Royce & Associates LP Sells 3,600 Shares of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP sold 3,600 shares of Advanced Energy Industries, reducing its holdings by 5.7%, leaving it with a total of 60,026 shares valued at approximately $5.7 million.
• In the first quarter, multiple institutional investors increased their positions in Advanced Energy Industries, with CWM LLC raising its stake by an astonishing 85.4%.
• Advanced Energy Industries reported a 23.5% year-over-year revenue increase, achieving $404.60 million in revenue with earnings per share of $1.23, surpassing estimates.

Royce & Associates LP decreased its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS - Free Report) by 5.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,026 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 3,600 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned about 0.16% of Advanced Energy Industries worth $5,721,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Homestead Advisers Corp boosted its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 15.0% in the first quarter. Homestead Advisers Corp now owns 59,662 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $5,686,000 after buying an additional 7,800 shares in the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 5.7% in the first quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 163,300 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $15,564,000 after buying an additional 8,852 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 20.5% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,673 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC boosted its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 0.3% in the first quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 29,565 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $2,818,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 85.4% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,077 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.67% of the company's stock.

Advanced Energy Industries Trading Up 1.6%

NASDAQ AEIS traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $144.42. 35,130 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 334,350. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $75.01 and a one year high of $145.52. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $115.71. The stock has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 4.43 and a quick ratio of 3.28.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The electronics maker reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.26. Advanced Energy Industries had a net margin of 4.73% and a return on equity of 10.70%. The business had revenue of $404.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $392.36 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. Advanced Energy Industries's quarterly revenue was up 23.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Energy Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. Advanced Energy Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AEIS. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $138.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price target (down previously from $135.00) on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $130.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advanced Energy Industries

In other news, EVP Paul R. Oldham sold 1,173 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.29, for a total transaction of $154,003.17. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,006 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,070,777.74. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John Donaghey sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $280,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,544,060. The trade was a 15.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

About Advanced Energy Industries

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.