Royce & Associates LP Lowers Stake in Nova Ltd. $NVMI

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP reduced its Nova Ltd. stake by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 7,568 shares and ending with 83,480 shares valued at about $27.4 million.
• Nova’s latest earnings beat expectations, reporting $2.33 EPS on revenue of $235.31 million versus forecasts of $2.20 EPS and $227.02 million in revenue. The company also guided Q2 2026 EPS to 2.340-2.480.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly positive, with nine Buy ratings and two Hold ratings, though Zacks Research recently downgraded the stock to Hold. The average analyst price target is $518.22, while the stock opened at $503.49.

Royce & Associates LP cut its position in shares of Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI - Free Report) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 83,480 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 7,568 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.28% of Nova worth $27,414,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NVMI. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Nova during the third quarter worth about $40,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in Nova by 75.7% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 130 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in Nova by 2,042.9% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 150 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Nova by 51.6% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 376 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Nova by 62.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 260 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 82.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Nova from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Nova from $500.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $494.00 target price on shares of Nova in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Nova from $520.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Nova from $465.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $518.22.

Nova Price Performance

Shares of NVMI stock opened at $503.49 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $16.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 1.78. Nova Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $179.00 and a fifty-two week high of $565.00. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $489.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $419.55.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The semiconductor company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $235.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $227.02 million. Nova had a net margin of 29.21% and a return on equity of 21.77%. Nova's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.18 earnings per share. Nova has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.340-2.480 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Nova Ltd. will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Nova news, Director Sarit Sagiv sold 426 shares of Nova stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.49, for a total transaction of $219,172.74. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,253,812.13. The trade was a 14.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Yaniv Garty sold 426 shares of Nova stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.49, for a total transaction of $219,172.74. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,048,530.62. This trade represents a 17.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 907 shares of company stock worth $461,720. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Nova Company Profile

Nova Measuring Instruments Ltd NASDAQ: NVMI develops and supplies advanced metrology and process control systems for the semiconductor manufacturing industry. The company's core product line includes spectroscopic ellipsometry and scatterometry tools designed to measure film thickness, critical dimensions, overlay alignment and other key parameters that drive yield and performance in integrated circuit fabrication.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Rehovot, Israel, Nova Measuring Instruments has established itself as a critical partner to leading semiconductor foundries and device manufacturers.

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