Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• ACLS shares jumped 7.5%, opening at $143.27 versus the prior close of $136.71 and later trading near $145.55.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: the consensus rating is “Hold”, with an average price target of $148.67; Craig Hallum downgraded the stock to Hold, while Bank of America raised its target to $156 but retained an Underperform rating.
• Axcelis exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.06 in EPS and $215.18 million in revenue, while institutional investors own nearly 90% of outstanding shares.

Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday. The stock had previously closed at $136.71, but opened at $143.27. Axcelis Technologies shares last traded at $145.5490, with a volume of 69,268 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on ACLS. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Craig Hallum lowered shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $130.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $148.67.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Up 7.5%

The company has a current ratio of 4.90, a quick ratio of 3.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.40, a P/E/G ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 1.85. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $123.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $134.00.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.17. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 10.71% and a return on equity of 11.69%. The firm had revenue of $215.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $205.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Axcelis Technologies has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.110-1.110 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ACLS. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 3,402.5% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 491,745 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $45,772,000 after purchasing an additional 477,705 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Axcelis Technologies during the second quarter valued at $13,070,000. Peterson Wealth Services increased its position in Axcelis Technologies by 1,750.8% in the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 7,403 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $595,000 after buying an additional 7,003 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Axcelis Technologies in the first quarter worth $1,004,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 96.1% in the first quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 200,371 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $18,651,000 after buying an additional 98,184 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.98% of the company's stock.

About Axcelis Technologies

Axcelis Technologies, Inc NASDAQ: ACLS develops and manufactures equipment used in semiconductor fabrication. The company's primary business is ion implantation, a process that modifies the electrical properties of silicon and other semiconductor materials by introducing controlled amounts of dopants. Its systems are used by chip manufacturers to produce a range of semiconductor devices.

Axcelis offers the Purion family of ion implantation systems, including platforms designed for high-current, medium-current and high-energy applications.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.