Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) Position Lifted by Meritage Portfolio Management

Meritage Portfolio Management raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,559 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Axcelis Technologies were worth $591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACLS. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 74.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 152 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. 89.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Douglas A. Lawson bought 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $111.04 per share, for a total transaction of $55,520.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,648 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,181,713.92. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ACLS. B. Riley dropped their price objective on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 9th. B. Riley Financial lowered their target price on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $189.00.

Axcelis Technologies Price Performance

Shares of ACLS traded up $3.55 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $103.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 244,779 shares, compared to its average volume of 664,525. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $108.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $123.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 3.79 and a quick ratio of 2.71. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $93.77 and a fifty-two week high of $201.00.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The semiconductor company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $310.29 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $297.92 million. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 21.78% and a return on equity of 31.66%. The business’s revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.71 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies Company Profile

Axcelis Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The company offers high energy, high current, and medium current implanters for various application requirements.