Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) Sees Large Volume Increase - Here's What Happened

Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI - Get Free Report) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 360,007 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 50% from the previous session's volume of 239,306 shares.The stock last traded at $275.28 and had previously closed at $268.43.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on NVMI shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Nova from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Benchmark decreased their price target on Nova from $295.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Nova from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $300.00 price target (up from $250.00) on shares of Nova in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Nova from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Nova currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $282.50.

Nova Price Performance

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $217.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.87. The stock has a market cap of $8.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.02, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.66.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The semiconductor company reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.10. Nova had a net margin of 28.46% and a return on equity of 23.98%. The firm had revenue of $213.36 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $210.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.39 earnings per share. Nova's revenue was up 50.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Nova Ltd. will post 7.52 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nova

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NVMI. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Nova by 49.3% in the fourth quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,411,677 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $474,980,000 after acquiring an additional 796,629 shares during the last quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc raised its holdings in shares of Nova by 504.5% during the fourth quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 354,302 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $69,780,000 after buying an additional 295,691 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Nova by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 600,868 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $118,341,000 after buying an additional 150,000 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nova during the first quarter valued at approximately $22,647,000. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Nova by 7.8% during the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 1,490,554 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $274,254,000 after buying an additional 107,215 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.99% of the company's stock.

About Nova

Nova Ltd. designs, develops, produces, and sells process control systems used in the manufacture of semiconductors in Israel, Taiwan, the United States, China, Korea, and internationally. Its product portfolio includes a set of metrology platforms for dimensional, films, and materials and chemical metrology measurements for process control for various semiconductor manufacturing process steps, including lithography, etch, chemical mechanical planarization, deposition, electrochemical plating, and advanced packaging.