Entegris (NASDAQ:ENTG) to Repurchase $500 million in Outstanding Stock

Entegris (NASDAQ:ENTG) declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, November 9th, RTT News reports. The company plans to buy back $500 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to purchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on ENTG shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Entegris from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Entegris from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Entegris from $212.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Entegris from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Entegris from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $152.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Entegris presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.17.

Entegris Trading Up 9.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:ENTG traded up $12.08 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $140.06. 4,807,647 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,159,999. The stock has a market cap of $21.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.39. Entegris has a fifty-two week low of $67.97 and a fifty-two week high of $186.94. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $146.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $138.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 1.59.

Entegris (NASDAQ:ENTG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The semiconductor company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $925.35 million. Entegris had a net margin of 11.14% and a return on equity of 13.86%. Entegris’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Entegris will post 4.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Entegris Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 28th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 28th. Entegris’s payout ratio is 15.63%.

Insider Transactions at Entegris

In other news, insider Olivier Blachier sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.66, for a total value of $321,320.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 34,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,622,618.02. This represents a 5.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Susan Rice sold 2,062 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.52, for a total transaction of $308,310.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 66,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,014,251.52. The trade was a 2.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 7,978 shares of company stock worth $1,273,734. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Entegris

Entegris, Inc supplies advanced materials and process solutions used in semiconductor manufacturing and other high-technology industries. Its products help customers control contamination and manage materials throughout complex manufacturing processes.

The company’s offerings include specialty chemicals and gases, filtration and purification systems, fluid and gas handling products, and wafer handling and storage solutions. Entegris also provides related services and technologies designed to support the production of semiconductor devices and other advanced products.

Entegris serves customers around the world, with operations and support across the Americas, Asia and Europe.