Squarepoint Ops LLC Purchases Shares of 22,526 Cohu, Inc. $COHU

Key Points

• Squarepoint Ops LLC initiated a position in Cohu by purchasing 22,526 shares valued at approximately $1.665 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.67% of the company.
• Cohu reported quarterly EPS of $0.26, exceeding the $0.14 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 38.3% year over year to $149 million. However, insiders sold 29,307 shares worth about $1.57 million over the past 90 days.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.75, compared with the reported share price of $49.97.

Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in shares of Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 22,526 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $1,665,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Cohu by 109.8% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 879 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Cohu during the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new position in shares of Cohu in the second quarter worth about $569,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Cohu in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new stake in shares of Cohu during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,106,000. 94.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Nina Richardson sold 3,055 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.54, for a total transaction of $157,454.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 39,093 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,014,853.22. This represents a 7.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Christopher Bohrson sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.82, for a total transaction of $558,200.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 159,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,914,565.64. This trade represents a 5.89% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 29,307 shares of company stock valued at $1,566,693 in the last ninety days. 3.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COHU has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $74.00 target price on shares of Cohu in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Cohu from $54.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Cohu from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Cohu in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Cohu from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.75.

Cohu Price Performance

Cohu stock opened at $49.97 on Wednesday. Cohu, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.67 and a 52 week high of $74.60. The company's 50 day moving average price is $51.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.61. The stock has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -60.20 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 4.72, a current ratio of 5.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $149.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $144.20 million. Cohu had a negative return on equity of 1.96% and a negative net margin of 7.43%.Cohu's quarterly revenue was up 38.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.02 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Cohu, Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Cohu Profile

Cohu, Inc is a semiconductor test and inspection equipment company that develops products used throughout the semiconductor manufacturing process. Its portfolio includes semiconductor test handlers, test contactors, inspection and metrology systems, thermal-management solutions, and software for managing and analyzing test data.

The company's equipment helps semiconductor manufacturers and outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers handle, connect, test, inspect, and characterize packaged semiconductor devices.

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