nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) Shares Purchased by Needham Investment Management LLC

Needham Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,652,115 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 314,375 shares during the period. nLIGHT accounts for approximately 2.1% of Needham Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Needham Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of nLIGHT worth $27,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LASR. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in nLIGHT by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 159,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,675,000 after acquiring an additional 15,904 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in nLIGHT during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,976,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its stake in nLIGHT by 20.8% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 946,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,932,000 after acquiring an additional 162,903 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its stake in nLIGHT by 317.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 70,599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $755,000 after acquiring an additional 53,699 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in nLIGHT by 145.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 64,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $674,000 after acquiring an additional 38,050 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LASR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of nLIGHT from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Craig Hallum raised shares of nLIGHT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of nLIGHT from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 53,511 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.17, for a total transaction of $437,184.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,267,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,358,963.59. This trade represents a 4.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 4.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

nLIGHT Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LASR opened at $12.48 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $617.00 million, a P/E ratio of -12.12 and a beta of 2.02. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $8.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.94. nLIGHT, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $6.20 and a fifty-two week high of $14.73.

nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.17) by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $51.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.77 million. nLIGHT had a negative net margin of 24.16% and a negative return on equity of 19.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.17) EPS. Research analysts forecast that nLIGHT, Inc. will post -1.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

nLIGHT Company Profile

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications.