Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,330,000 shares, a growth of 22.0% from the March 31st total of 1,090,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 565,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days. Approximately 3.0% of the company's shares are short sold.

Ultra Clean Stock Up 8.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ UCTT traded up $1.52 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $20.17. The company had a trading volume of 958,696 shares, compared to its average volume of 447,373. Ultra Clean has a 1-year low of $16.66 and a 1-year high of $56.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm's 50 day moving average is $21.93 and its 200-day moving average is $31.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $910.66 million, a P/E ratio of 252.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 2.09.

Ultra Clean (NASDAQ:UCTT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $518.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $526.13 million. Ultra Clean had a net margin of 0.18% and a return on equity of 4.08%. The business's revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.27 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ultra Clean will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ultra Clean news, insider Bill Bentinck bought 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $25.17 per share, with a total value of $75,510.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 60,695 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,693.15. This trade represents a 5.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ernest E. Maddock purchased 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $24.29 per share, for a total transaction of $242,900.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 11,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $267,190. This represents a 1,000.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ultra Clean

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Ultra Clean by 29.1% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,725 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 1,064 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ultra Clean by 20.4% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 37,743 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $808,000 after buying an additional 6,408 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ultra Clean by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 224,935 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $4,816,000 after buying an additional 5,114 shares during the period. New World Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ultra Clean in the 1st quarter valued at about $259,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Ultra Clean by 23.3% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 48,548 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,039,000 after acquiring an additional 9,169 shares during the period. 96.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com lowered Ultra Clean from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen cut their target price on Ultra Clean from $48.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Ultra Clean from $60.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on shares of Ultra Clean from $40.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ultra Clean has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.

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