Vicor (NASDAQ:VICR) Sets New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Vicor shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $300 and closing near $297.59, up about 19.4% on the day. The move came on heavy volume of 326,112 shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with recent upgrades and price-target hikes including Needham raising its target to $260 and Zacks upgrading the stock to strong-buy. MarketBeat says the average rating is “Buy,” with an average target price of $198.33.
• Recent earnings were better than expected, as Vicor reported $0.44 EPS versus $0.40 expected and revenue of $112.97 million, up 20.2% year over year. The company also noted strong profitability, with a net margin of 28.98% and return on equity of 20.21%.

Vicor Corporation (NASDAQ:VICR - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $300.00 and last traded at $297.5920, with a volume of 326112 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $256.47.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on VICR. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Vicor from $180.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vicor from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Vicor from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Vicor in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price target on shares of Vicor in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $198.33.

Vicor Trading Up 19.4%

The firm's 50 day moving average is $199.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $147.20. The firm has a market cap of $13.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.91 and a beta of 2.33.

Vicor (NASDAQ:VICR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The electronics maker reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.04. Vicor had a net margin of 28.98% and a return on equity of 20.21%. The business had revenue of $112.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.05 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.06 EPS. Vicor's quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Vicor Corporation will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Patrizio Vinciarelli sold 50,000 shares of Vicor stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.54, for a total transaction of $10,077,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 9,608,163 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,936,429,171.02. This trade represents a 0.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 716,070 shares of company stock worth $135,619,356. 31.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Vicor by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,534,534 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $277,785,000 after acquiring an additional 60,963 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Vicor by 4.6% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 578,515 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $28,759,000 after buying an additional 25,393 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Vicor by 1,542.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 439,820 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $48,205,000 after buying an additional 413,038 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Vicor by 3,918.9% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 432,189 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $47,368,000 after buying an additional 421,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Vicor by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 374,088 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $41,000,000 after buying an additional 106,206 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.45% of the company's stock.

About Vicor

Vicor Corporation is a designer and manufacturer of modular power components and systems, serving a wide range of industries that demand high performance and efficiency. Headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts, the company develops power conversion solutions that help customers optimize energy delivery in applications from telecommunications and data centers to industrial and automotive systems.

The company's product portfolio includes high-density DC-DC converters, AC-DC front-end modules, point-of-load regulators and complete power systems that combine multiple conversion stages in a single package.

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.