JPMorgan Chase & Co. Initiates Coverage on Ceva (NASDAQ:CEVA)

Key Points

• JPMorgan initiated coverage on Ceva with a "neutral" rating and a $30 price target, implying roughly an 11% downside from the stock's prior close.
• Analysts collectively rate Ceva a "Moderate Buy" (seven Buys, one Hold, one Sell) with an average price target of $32.13, though individual targets range from about $22 up to $42.
• Ceva's latest quarter met EPS estimates ($0.18) and saw revenue rise 7.1% to $31.29M, but the company still reports negative net margin and ROE and has a market cap near $939M.

Research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Ceva (NASDAQ:CEVA - Get Free Report) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 price target on the semiconductor company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price would indicate a potential downside of 11.03% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on CEVA. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Ceva in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. TD Cowen started coverage on Ceva in a research report on Friday, March 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Ceva in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Ceva in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Ceva from $27.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $32.13.

Ceva Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of CEVA opened at $33.72 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $21.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.53. Ceva has a twelve month low of $17.02 and a twelve month high of $34.87. The company has a market cap of $939.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -78.42 and a beta of 1.94.

Ceva (NASDAQ:CEVA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The semiconductor company reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.18. Ceva had a negative return on equity of 3.15% and a negative net margin of 9.71%.The firm had revenue of $31.29 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.03 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.11 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ceva will post -0.25 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ceva

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CEVA. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ceva by 77.6% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,446 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 632 shares during the period. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Ceva in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in Ceva by 422.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,731 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 2,208 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in Ceva by 771.8% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,380 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 2,107 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Ceva by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 6,758 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. 85.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ceva

Ceva, Inc NASDAQ: CEVA is a leading licensor of signal processing IP cores and platforms that enable intelligent, connected devices. The company designs a broad portfolio of digital signal processing (DSP) and AI processors, software development toolkits and reference frameworks for applications ranging from 5G wireless communications and Bluetooth connectivity to audio, computer vision, sensor fusion and edge AI. Its solutions target a variety of end markets including smartphones, automotive, IoT devices, smart home, industrial automation and wearable electronics.

Founded in 1999 as a spin-off from DSP Group, Ceva has built its reputation on delivering modular, power-efficient IP that can be customized to meet stringent performance, area and power requirements.

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