Sapience Investments LLC Has $2.56 Million Stake in Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT)

Sapience Investments LLC trimmed its holdings in Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT - Free Report) by 15.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 71,335 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 13,295 shares during the period. Ultra Clean comprises about 1.5% of Sapience Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Sapience Investments LLC owned about 0.16% of Ultra Clean worth $2,564,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in Ultra Clean by 132.6% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 36,225 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,302,000 after purchasing an additional 20,650 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Ultra Clean by 694.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 977 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 854 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Ultra Clean by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 219,821 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $7,903,000 after acquiring an additional 6,546 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Ultra Clean by 395.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 83,577 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $3,337,000 after acquiring an additional 66,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Ultra Clean in the fourth quarter valued at $3,988,000. Institutional investors own 96.06% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ernest E. Maddock bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $24.29 per share, with a total value of $242,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $267,190. This trade represents a 1,000.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Jamie J. Palfrey sold 9,500 shares of Ultra Clean stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.20, for a total value of $182,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,465 shares in the company, valued at $584,928. The trade was a 23.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Ultra Clean Price Performance

Shares of Ultra Clean stock traded up $0.23 during trading on Thursday, reaching $20.54. 131,985 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 461,491. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $21.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.37. The company has a market cap of $927.50 million, a P/E ratio of 256.91, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 2.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 2.75. Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.66 and a 1-year high of $56.47.

Ultra Clean (NASDAQ:UCTT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $518.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $526.13 million. Ultra Clean had a return on equity of 4.08% and a net margin of 0.18%. The firm's revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.27 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on UCTT shares. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Ultra Clean from $48.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Ultra Clean from $40.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ultra Clean from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Ultra Clean from $60.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.00.

About Ultra Clean

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc develops and supplies critical subsystems, components and parts, and ultra-high purity cleaning and analytical services for the semiconductor industry in the United States and internationally. The company provides ultra-clean valves, high purity connectors, industrial process connectors and valves, pneumatic actuators, manifolds and safety solutions, hoses, pressure gauges, and gas line and component heaters; chemical delivery modules that deliver gases and reactive chemicals in a liquid or gaseous form from a centralized subsystem to the reaction chamber; and gas delivery systems, such as weldments, filters, mass flow controllers, regulators, pressure transducers and valves, component heaters, and an integrated electronic and/or pneumatic control system.