Wolfspeed (NYSE:WOLF) Shares Up 39% - Here's What Happened

Wolfspeed (NYSE:WOLF - Get Free Report) shot up 39% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $2.05 and last traded at $1.97. 63,740,984 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 125% from the average session volume of 28,384,488 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.42.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on WOLF. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Wolfspeed from $10.00 to $6.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $3.00 price target (down previously from $7.00) on shares of Wolfspeed in a research report on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Wolfspeed from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of Wolfspeed in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $11.15.

Wolfspeed Stock Down 4.8%

The company's fifty day moving average is $1.48 and its 200-day moving average is $3.66. The company has a market capitalization of $263.79 million, a PE ratio of -0.20 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.65, a quick ratio of 3.90 and a current ratio of 4.64.

Wolfspeed (NYSE:WOLF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.72) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.82) by $0.10. Wolfspeed had a negative net margin of 146.43% and a negative return on equity of 103.97%. The business had revenue of $185.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $190.03 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.62) EPS. The company's revenue was down 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Wolfspeed will post -4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Wolfspeed

In related news, CFO Neill Reynolds sold 13,909 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.99, for a total value of $55,496.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 195,257 shares in the company, valued at $779,075.43. This trade represents a 6.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Wolfspeed

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WOLF. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Wolfspeed by 51.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 7,463 shares of the company's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 2,533 shares during the period. Ground Swell Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Wolfspeed by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Ground Swell Capital LLC now owns 12,827 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 2,611 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Wolfspeed by 12.4% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 2,922 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Wolfspeed by 17.1% during the first quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 22,653 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 3,308 shares during the period. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Wolfspeed by 39.7% during the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 15,592 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 4,429 shares during the period.

Wolfspeed Company Profile

Wolfspeed, Inc operates as a powerhouse semiconductor company focuses on silicon carbide and gallium nitride (GaN) technologies in Europe, Hong Kong, China, rest of Asia-Pacific, the United States, and internationally. It offers silicon carbide and GaN materials, including silicon carbide bare wafers, epitaxial wafers, and GaN epitaxial layers on silicon carbide wafers to manufacture products for RF, power, and other applications.