Phoenix Financial Ltd. Sells 1,133,269 Shares of Tower Semiconductor Ltd. $TSEM

Key Points

• Phoenix Financial cut its Tower Semiconductor stake by 32.3%, selling 1,133,269 shares in the third quarter. It retained 2,372,509 shares, worth about $539.8 million and representing 3.6% of its portfolio.
• Tower shares fell 6.9% to $146.89 in Friday trading. The company’s latest quarterly revenue rose 32.8% year over year to $526.2 million, while EPS of $1.05 slightly missed estimates.
• Analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $297.12; Stifel Nicolaus lowered its target to $235 while keeping a Buy rating.

Phoenix Financial Ltd. lowered its position in shares of Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ:TSEM - Free Report) by 32.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,372,509 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 1,133,269 shares during the period. Tower Semiconductor comprises about 3.6% of Phoenix Financial Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Phoenix Financial Ltd. owned approximately 2.11% of Tower Semiconductor worth $539,751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TSEM. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 4.1% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,295 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $338,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 20.8% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 319 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 3.0% during the second quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $745,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 1.8% during the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 5,111 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,162,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tower Semiconductor by 8.1% during the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,428 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Tower Semiconductor from $270.00 to $235.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised Tower Semiconductor from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Tower Semiconductor in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. National Bank Financial upgraded Tower Semiconductor to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Mizuho started coverage on Tower Semiconductor in a research report on Friday, September 25th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $297.12.

Tower Semiconductor Trading Down 6.9%

Shares of TSEM traded down $10.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $146.89. 3,313,965 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,461,596. Tower Semiconductor Ltd. has a 12 month low of $87.30 and a 12 month high of $319.94. The company has a quick ratio of 3.23, a current ratio of 3.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company's fifty day moving average price is $200.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $205.31. The company has a market capitalization of $16.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.23 and a beta of 0.95.

Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ:TSEM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The semiconductor company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by ($0.02). Tower Semiconductor had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 19.36%. The company had revenue of $526.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $521.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. Tower Semiconductor's quarterly revenue was up 32.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Tower Semiconductor Ltd. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Tower Semiconductor news, Director Yoav Chelouche sold 232 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.06, for a total transaction of $49,893.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,254,834.04. This represents a 0.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Tower Semiconductor Company Profile

Tower Semiconductor Ltd. is an Israel-based specialty semiconductor foundry that manufactures chips for companies that design and market their own products. Its services include wafer fabrication, process development and engineering support, helping customers bring semiconductor designs from development into production. The company focuses on analog and mixed-signal technologies used in areas such as radio-frequency communications, power management, image sensing, automotive electronics and silicon photonics.

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