IPG Photonics (NASDAQ:IPGP) Reaches New 1-Year Low at $80.33

IPG Photonics Co. (NASDAQ:IPGP - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $80.33 and last traded at $83.28, with a volume of 92663 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $88.58.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on IPGP. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of IPG Photonics from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Seaport Res Ptn reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of IPG Photonics in a report on Thursday, January 25th. StockNews.com downgraded IPG Photonics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 17th. Finally, Citigroup cut IPG Photonics from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $111.00 to $74.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $117.20.

IPG Photonics Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.18, a PEG ratio of 17.53 and a beta of 1.19. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $87.72 and a 200-day moving average of $94.15.

IPG Photonics (NASDAQ:IPGP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The semiconductor company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.06). IPG Photonics had a net margin of 17.00% and a return on equity of 9.18%. The business had revenue of $298.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $287.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.91) earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that IPG Photonics Co. will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

IPG Photonics declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to repurchase up to 7.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at IPG Photonics

In other news, major shareholder Valentin Gapontsev Trust I sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.56, for a total transaction of $895,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,209,599 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $645,691,686.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 29,000 shares of company stock worth $2,525,140 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 33.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On IPG Photonics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in IPGP. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in IPG Photonics by 1.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,755 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $889,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of IPG Photonics by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,302 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,118,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in shares of IPG Photonics by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 13,300 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,444,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in IPG Photonics by 18.4% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 922 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the period. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in IPG Photonics by 127.2% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 259 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.79% of the company's stock.

About IPG Photonics

IPG Photonics Corporation develops, manufactures, and sells various high-performance fiber lasers, fiber amplifiers, and diode lasers used in various applications primarily in materials processing worldwide. Its laser products include hybrid fiber-solid state lasers with green and ultraviolet wavelengths; fiber pigtailed packaged diodes and fiber coupled direct diode laser systems; high-energy pulsed lasers, multi-wavelength and tunable lasers, and single-polarization and single-frequency lasers; and high-power optical fiber delivery cables, fiber couplers, beam switches, chillers, scanners, and other accessories.