Reinhart Partners LLC. Grows Stock Holdings in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Reinhart Partners LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS - Free Report) by 39.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,441,022 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 404,910 shares during the period. Axcelis Technologies accounts for about 2.6% of Reinhart Partners LLC.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Reinhart Partners LLC. owned 4.48% of Axcelis Technologies worth $71,576,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,396,134 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $307,158,000 after buying an additional 106,203 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 37.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,060,096 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $74,069,000 after acquiring an additional 290,678 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 897,750 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $62,738,000 after acquiring an additional 23,234 shares during the period. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC increased its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 764,069 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $53,386,000 after acquiring an additional 268,098 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 724,585 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $50,628,000 after acquiring an additional 71,631 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. William Blair lowered Axcelis Technologies from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, B. Riley reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $50.00 target price (down from $80.00) on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $131.00.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Performance

Axcelis Technologies stock traded up $3.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $63.51. The stock had a trading volume of 480,835 shares, compared to its average volume of 649,409. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.40 and a 1 year high of $158.61. The company has a quick ratio of 4.05, a current ratio of 5.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock's 50 day moving average is $53.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.88. The stock has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.52.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The semiconductor company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.65. The firm had revenue of $192.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $184.86 million. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 21.02% and a net margin of 19.75%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Axcelis Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, March 12th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Axcelis Technologies news, Director John T. Kurtzweil sold 1,682 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.93, for a total value of $104,166.26. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 35,050 shares in the company, valued at $2,170,646.50. This trade represents a 4.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

About Axcelis Technologies

Axcelis Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The company offers high energy, high current, and medium current implanters for various application requirements.