Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) Short Interest Update

Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,230,000 shares, an increase of 7.2% from the July 15th total of 2,080,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 615,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.6 days. Currently, 7.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jorge Titinger sold 6,086 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.98, for a total value of $669,338.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,891 shares in the company, valued at approximately $647,892.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.43% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axcelis Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ACLS. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 348.9% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 211 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Axcelis Technologies by 109.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 266 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Axcelis Technologies by 223.8% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 272 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the second quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 690.0% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 474 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Axcelis Technologies Trading Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ ACLS opened at $116.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.61. The business’s fifty day moving average is $130.70 and its 200-day moving average is $118.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 4.42 and a quick ratio of 2.87. Axcelis Technologies has a one year low of $93.77 and a one year high of $196.03.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.18. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 21.54% and a return on equity of 27.35%. The business had revenue of $256.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Axcelis Technologies will post 6.76 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ACLS. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Benchmark cut their target price on Axcelis Technologies from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. B. Riley lowered their price target on Axcelis Technologies from $190.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Craig Hallum raised their price objective on Axcelis Technologies from $130.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $167.33.

About Axcelis Technologies

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.