Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) Trading 6.1% Higher - Here's Why

Key Points

• Cohu shares rose 6.1% to about $58.06, despite trading volume running 95% below the average daily level.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $68.75; recent targets range from $65 to $74.
• Cohu exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.26 in EPS versus $0.14 expected and $149 million in revenue, up 38.3% year over year. Institutional ownership is high at 94.67%, while insiders sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU - Get Free Report) shares shot up 6.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $58.47 and last traded at $58.0570. 52,079 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 1,113,634 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on COHU shares. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Cohu in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Cohu from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Cohu from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Craig Hallum reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $74.00 target price on shares of Cohu in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $74.00 price target on shares of Cohu in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cohu has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $68.75.

Cohu Trading Up 5.4%

The firm has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -69.53 and a beta of 1.58. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $52.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.15. The company has a quick ratio of 4.72, a current ratio of 5.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.12. Cohu had a negative return on equity of 1.96% and a negative net margin of 7.43%.The firm had revenue of $149.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $144.20 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.02 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 38.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Cohu, Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Cohu

In other news, Director Andrew Caggia sold 15,252 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.74, for a total transaction of $789,138.48. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 64,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,351,613.72. This represents a 19.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Nina Richardson sold 3,055 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.54, for a total value of $157,454.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 39,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,014,853.22. This trade represents a 7.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 30,307 shares of company stock worth $1,630,573 over the last quarter. 3.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cohu

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Cohu during the second quarter valued at about $545,932,000. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in Cohu by 7,111.0% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 4,239,478 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $313,340,000 after acquiring an additional 4,180,686 shares in the last quarter. SG Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Cohu during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,174,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in Cohu during the second quarter valued at approximately $77,814,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Cohu by 478.4% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,175,282 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $22,612,000 after purchasing an additional 972,088 shares in the last quarter. 94.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Cohu

Cohu, Inc is a global provider of semiconductor test and inspection solutions, offering a broad portfolio of products designed to support chip manufacturers, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) providers, and electronics original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The company's product lineup includes automatic test handlers, wafer probers, test sockets, thermal subassembly systems and burn-in boards, all engineered to optimize throughput, accuracy and reliability in semiconductor production and final test.

Founded in 1947 and headquartered in Poway, California, Cohu has grown through both organic development and targeted acquisitions to become a recognized leader in test handling and interconnect technologies.

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