MaxLinear (NASDAQ:MXL) Cut to "Hold" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded MaxLinear from a “buy” to a “hold,” adding to a mixed analyst picture on the semiconductor stock. MarketBeat says the consensus rating is now “Hold,” with an average price target of $65.50.
• MaxLinear shares fell 3.4% following the downgrade, and the stock opened at $71.84. The company has seen a wide trading range over the past year, from $12.77 to $128.30.
• Recent fundamentals were mixed but better on revenue: the company beat quarterly EPS estimates with $0.22 per share and posted 43% revenue growth year over year. However, insiders have been selling shares, with $5.56 million sold over the last 90 days.

MaxLinear (NASDAQ:MXL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Saturday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on MXL. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of MaxLinear in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Benchmark assumed coverage on MaxLinear in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Susquehanna restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of MaxLinear in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on MaxLinear from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of MaxLinear in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.50.

MaxLinear Stock Down 3.4%

MaxLinear stock opened at $71.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.70. MaxLinear has a one year low of $12.77 and a one year high of $128.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $91.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.43 billion, a P/E ratio of -47.26 and a beta of 3.91.

MaxLinear (NASDAQ:MXL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The semiconductor company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. MaxLinear had a negative net margin of 25.96% and a negative return on equity of 2.33%. The firm had revenue of $137.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $137.15 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.05) EPS. MaxLinear's quarterly revenue was up 43.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that MaxLinear will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Thomas E. Pardun sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $1,155,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 55,252 shares in the company, valued at $5,801,460. This trade represents a 16.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Connie H. Kwong sold 35,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.96, for a total value of $3,393,600.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 13,947 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,352,301.12. The trade was a 71.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 65,168 shares of company stock valued at $5,559,358. Company insiders own 7.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of MaxLinear

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in MaxLinear by 161.7% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,416 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 875 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MaxLinear by 103.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,431 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of MaxLinear in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MaxLinear in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in MaxLinear by 16.1% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,563 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.79% of the company's stock.

MaxLinear Company Profile

MaxLinear, Inc is a provider of radio-frequency (RF), analog, and mixed-signal integrated circuits for broadband communications, data center connectivity, and video infrastructure applications. The company's product portfolio includes high-performance RF front-end modules, broadband power amplifiers, optical and Ethernet transceivers, and network processors designed to support demanding signal processing requirements.

MaxLinear's semiconductor solutions are used by cable and satellite television operators, fiber-to-the-home service providers, network equipment manufacturers, and data center operators.

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