Insider Selling: nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) CFO Sells 20,243 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• nLight CFO Joseph John Corso sold 20,243 shares on May 19 at an average price of $68.48, totaling about $1.39 million. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan to cover tax withholding tied to vesting equity awards.
• The CFO has also made several other recent stock sales, including transactions on May 20, May 18, May 15, and in early March, making the insider selling notable in size even if it appears routine.
• nLight’s business results remain strong: the company recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue expectations, with revenue up 55.2% year over year. Analysts remain generally positive on the stock, with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $69.06.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) CFO Joseph John Corso sold 20,243 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total value of $1,386,240.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 213,048 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,589,527.04. This trade represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Joseph John Corso also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, May 20th, Joseph John Corso sold 35,476 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.40, for a total value of $2,497,510.40.
• On Monday, May 18th, Joseph John Corso sold 19,575 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.82, for a total value of $1,386,301.50.
• On Friday, May 15th, Joseph John Corso sold 18,445 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total value of $1,386,326.20.
• On Friday, March 6th, Joseph John Corso sold 12,290 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.39, for a total value of $742,193.10.
• On Thursday, March 5th, Joseph John Corso sold 13,038 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total value of $807,834.48.

nLight Trading Up 7.2%

Shares of nLight stock traded up $5.13 on Thursday, reaching $76.43. 1,031,993 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,345,495. nLight has a one year low of $13.38 and a one year high of $86.95. The company has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -254.76 and a beta of 2.34. The company has a 50-day moving average of $68.47 and a 200 day moving average of $51.88.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.12. nLight had a negative return on equity of 4.18% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.The company had revenue of $80.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $72.14 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.04) EPS. The business's revenue was up 55.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that nLight will post -0.17 earnings per share for the current year.

nLight News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting nLight this week:

• Positive Sentiment: nLight reported strong quarterly results earlier this month, with EPS of $0.20 versus estimates of $0.08 and revenue of $80.18 million versus expectations of $72.14 million. Revenue also rose 55.2% year over year, reinforcing the company’s growth story and helping support the stock.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive, with several firms reiterating or raising buy ratings and price targets, including targets as high as $100. That suggests the market still sees room for more upside in LASR.
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple insider sales were disclosed by CEO Scott H. Keeney, CFO Joseph John Corso, and CAO James Nias. The company said the trades were made under pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans and to cover tax withholding tied to vesting equity awards, which makes them less concerning than discretionary selling.
• Neutral Sentiment: The selling was sizable in dollar terms, especially from the CEO and CFO, so investors may still view it as a sentiment headwind even though the transactions appear routine.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on nLight from $40.00 to $62.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of nLight in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird started coverage on nLight in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded nLight from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of nLight in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $69.06.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLight

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in nLight by 32.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 235,398 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,422,000 after acquiring an additional 58,272 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in nLight by 12.1% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 21,941 shares of the company's stock worth $1,251,000 after buying an additional 2,361 shares during the period. Amundi bought a new position in nLight during the 1st quarter worth $1,023,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in nLight by 67.9% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,783 shares of the company's stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 721 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in nLight by 25.0% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 55,097 shares of the company's stock worth $3,142,000 after buying an additional 11,012 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.88% of the company's stock.

About nLight

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.

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