Vanguard Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. $ACLS

Key Points

• Vanguard Group trimmed its stake in Axcelis by 1.5% (sold 63,172 shares) in Q4 and now holds 4,122,529 shares — roughly 13.43% of the company valued at about $331.2 million; overall institutional ownership is ~89.98%.
• Axcelis modestly beat Q1 estimates (non‑GAAP EPS $0.72 vs. $0.71; revenue $199.0M vs. $195M) and raised Q2 2026 EPS guidance to about $0.90, providing near‑term upside to earnings expectations.
• Insider selling may temper sentiment: CEO Russell Low sold 7,468 shares (~$1.17M) under a pre‑arranged 10b5‑1 plan and insiders sold ~10,956 shares in the past three months, while analyst ratings remain mixed with a consensus target of $116.25.

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its stake in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,122,529 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 63,172 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 13.43% of Axcelis Technologies worth $331,204,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACLS. Close Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies during the third quarter worth $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 145.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 451 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies during the third quarter worth $32,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies during the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies during the third quarter worth $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.98% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Axcelis Technologies

Here are the key news stories impacting Axcelis Technologies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 guidance raised — management set Q2 2026 EPS guidance around $0.90, above the Street view (~$0.78), giving investors forward earnings upside and supporting a stronger near-term outlook. Axcelis Q1 slide deck / press release
• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results slightly beat: non-GAAP EPS $0.72 vs. consensus $0.71 and revenue $199.0M vs. $195M est; margins remain healthy (non‑GAAP gross margin ~40.7%), which validates profitability as revenue grows modestly year‑over‑year. Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) Surpasses Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Conference/technical visibility — Axcelis announced presentations and sponsorship at ASMC 2026 (May 11–14), boosting investor confidence in its process leadership in ion implantation and helping explain pre-earnings positioning. Axcelis to Participate in ASMC 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call and presentation disclose color on demand mix, margin drivers and product roadmap — useful detail for modeling but no major surprise beyond guidance. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (ACLS) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Company slide deck / results release available for deeper review; investors can check the specifics behind GAAP vs non‑GAAP adjustments. Axcelis Announces Financial Results for First Quarter 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale — CEO Russell Low sold 7,468 shares (~$1.17M) under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan; while disclosed as pre-planned, insider sales can temper sentiment. SEC Form 4 - Russell Low sale
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst coverage and targets remain mixed/low — recent median price target cited ~$95.5, well below current levels, which could limit upside if guidance disappoints or demand softens. Axcelis (ACLS) jumps 17.4% as investors react to new conference update and position ahead of earnings

Axcelis Technologies Trading Down 7.2%

Shares of ACLS opened at $158.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.77, a quick ratio of 3.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $55.93 and a 12-month high of $171.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $105.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.86, a P/E/G ratio of 20.44 and a beta of 1.93.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The semiconductor company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.01. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 14.33% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The firm had revenue of $198.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $195.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. Axcelis Technologies's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Axcelis Technologies has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.900- EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Axcelis Technologies

In other Axcelis Technologies news, CEO Russell Low sold 7,468 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.75, for a total value of $1,170,609.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 123,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,369,597.50. This represents a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jorge Titinger sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $80,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,477 shares in the company, valued at $518,160. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 10,956 shares of company stock valued at $1,540,361 in the last three months. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ACLS. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. B. Riley Financial raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Axcelis Technologies has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $116.25.

Axcelis Technologies Company Profile

Axcelis Technologies, Inc is a leading developer and manufacturer of ion implantation and cleaning equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips. The company specializes in high-current, medium-current and high-energy ion implantation systems, which are critical for introducing precisely controlled dopants into silicon wafers. Axcelis also offers plasma-based cleaning and dry strip tools that support advanced process nodes in logic, memory and power device manufacturing.

The company's product portfolio encompasses single-wafer and multi-wafer cluster tools designed to deliver high throughput, accuracy and uniformity for semiconductor process steps.

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