Guidance Capital Inc. Purchases Shares of 3,448 Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Guidance Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 3,448 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $360,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ACLS. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Axcelis Technologies during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 109.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 266 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 100.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 305 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Axcelis Technologies by 627.9% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 313 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 1,188.0% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 322 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John T. Kurtzweil sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.42, for a total transaction of $137,304.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 33,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,792,565.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.43% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Axcelis Technologies Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ACLS traded up $2.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $142.19. 1,140,029 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 564,220. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $93.77 and a twelve month high of $201.00. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $118.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 2.87 and a current ratio of 4.00. The company has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.78, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.54.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The semiconductor company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $252.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $242.55 million. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 30.22% and a net margin of 22.16%. As a group, analysts forecast that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 6.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ACLS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Craig Hallum raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, May 3rd. B. Riley lifted their price objective on Axcelis Technologies from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Benchmark cut their target price on Axcelis Technologies from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.00.

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.