nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) CFO Joseph John Corso Sells 35,476 Shares

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) CFO Joseph John Corso sold 35,476 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.40, for a total value of $2,497,510.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 177,572 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,501,068.80. The trade was a 16.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Joseph John Corso also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, May 19th, Joseph John Corso sold 20,243 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total value of $1,386,240.64.
• On Monday, May 18th, Joseph John Corso sold 19,575 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.82, for a total value of $1,386,301.50.
• On Friday, May 15th, Joseph John Corso sold 18,445 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.16, for a total value of $1,386,326.20.
• On Friday, March 6th, Joseph John Corso sold 12,290 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.39, for a total value of $742,193.10.
• On Thursday, March 5th, Joseph John Corso sold 13,038 shares of nLight stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total value of $807,834.48.

nLight Trading Up 7.2%

LASR opened at $76.43 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $68.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.88. nLight has a 12-month low of $13.38 and a 12-month high of $86.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -254.76 and a beta of 2.34.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $80.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.14 million. nLight had a negative return on equity of 4.18% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.04) EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that nLight will post -0.17 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on LASR shares. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on nLight from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of nLight in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on nLight from $40.00 to $62.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on nLight in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on nLight in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.06.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLight

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of nLight by 32.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 235,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,422,000 after acquiring an additional 58,272 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in nLight by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 21,941 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,251,000 after buying an additional 2,361 shares in the last quarter. Amundi purchased a new position in nLight in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,023,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in nLight by 67.9% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 721 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in nLight by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 55,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,142,000 after buying an additional 11,012 shares in the last quarter. 83.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More nLight News

Here are the key news stories impacting nLight this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investor sentiment remains supported by nLight’s latest quarterly report, which showed EPS of $0.20 versus $0.08 expected and revenue of $80.18 million versus $72.14 million expected. Revenue also rose 55.2% year over year, reinforcing the view that business momentum is improving. Q1 Earnings Highlights: Advanced Energy (NASDAQ:AEIS) Vs The Rest Of The Electronic Components Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Several executives sold shares, but the filings indicate the transactions were pre-arranged under Rule 10b5-1 plans and tied to tax withholding on vested equity awards, which makes the selling less concerning than discretionary insider exits.
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Scott H. Keeney sold shares in multiple transactions, and CFO Joseph John Corso and CAO James Nias also sold stock. While insider sales can weigh on sentiment, the disclosed rationale suggests routine portfolio/compensation-related activity rather than a change in business outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: The large amount of insider selling, especially from the CEO and CFO, may create some short-term pressure on LASR shares as traders weigh whether management is taking profits after the recent run-up.

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. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.