nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• nLight shares reached a new 52-week high of $32.18, showing strong trading activity with a volume of 472,809 shares exchanged.
• Analysts remain optimistic, with several firms adjusting their price targets significantly, reflecting an average target of $27.42 and multiple "buy" ratings.
• The company's recent earnings report exceeded expectations, revealing a quarterly revenue of $61.74 million and an EPS of $0.06, marking a year-over-year revenue increase of 22.2%.

Shares of nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $32.18 and last traded at $32.01, with a volume of 472809 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $31.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on LASR. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of nLight from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "speculative buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of nLight from $27.50 to $33.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of nLight from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on shares of nLight from $18.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Craig Hallum reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $24.00 target price (up previously from $14.00) on shares of nLight in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.42.

nLight Stock Up 1.5%

The company has a current ratio of 5.63, a quick ratio of 4.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a PE ratio of -33.29 and a beta of 2.44. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $25.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.79.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.15. The company had revenue of $61.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.24 million. nLight had a negative net margin of 21.66% and a negative return on equity of 19.12%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.10) EPS. nLight has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that nLight will post -1.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at nLight

In other news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 38,284 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.29, for a total transaction of $1,083,054.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 273,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,726,508.22. This represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 35,732 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.29, for a total transaction of $1,010,858.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,513,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $71,113,534.86. This trade represents a 1.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 346,155 shares of company stock worth $9,371,219 over the last three months. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in nLight by 147.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,550 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 924 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in shares of nLight by 1,599.1% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,727 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in nLight by 162.4% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of nLight in the second quarter worth about $71,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of nLight by 213.8% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,764 shares of the company's stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 3,246 shares during the period. 83.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

nLight Company Profile

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.

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