Marshall Wace LLP Trims Stake in Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT)

Marshall Wace LLP lowered its holdings in shares of Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT - Free Report) by 42.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,418 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 17,797 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.05% of Ultra Clean worth $878,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in UCTT. Mariner LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ultra Clean in the 4th quarter valued at about $210,000. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Ultra Clean by 172.2% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 227,502 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $8,178,000 after acquiring an additional 143,925 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ultra Clean during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,988,000. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Ultra Clean by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,957 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ultra Clean in the 4th quarter worth $1,126,000. 96.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ultra Clean

In related news, insider Bill Bentinck purchased 3,000 shares of Ultra Clean stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $25.17 per share, for a total transaction of $75,510.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ernest E. Maddock acquired 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $24.29 per share, for a total transaction of $242,900.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $267,190. This represents a 1,000.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on UCTT shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ultra Clean from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target 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, April 29th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Ultra Clean from $60.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Ultra Clean from $48.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.00.

Ultra Clean Stock Down 1.5 %

UCTT stock traded down $0.29 during trading on Monday, reaching $19.88. The stock had a trading volume of 263,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 550,190. 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 company has a market capitalization of $897.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 248.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 2.09. Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $16.66 and a one year high of $56.47. The company's 50 day moving average is $21.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.60.

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

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.