Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $289.90 and last traded at $275.60, with a volume of 121197 shares. The stock had previously closed at $245.43.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NVMI shares. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Nova in a research report on Monday, January 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $275.00 target price for the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Nova in a research note on Friday. Benchmark increased their target price on shares of Nova from $245.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Nova from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $226.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $246.67.

Nova Trading Down 0.4 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $221.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $207.11. The company has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.99, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.44.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The semiconductor company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by ($0.04). Nova had a return on equity of 21.35% and a net margin of 28.00%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Nova Ltd. will post 5.78 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nova

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its holdings in Nova by 131.0% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 13,540 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,821,000 after purchasing an additional 7,678 shares in the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd lifted its position in Nova by 74.6% in the third quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 1,281,869 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $267,487,000 after acquiring an additional 547,833 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in Nova by 121.9% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 145,100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,230,000 after acquiring an additional 79,700 shares during the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP acquired a new position in Nova in the third quarter valued at $15,669,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Nova during the third quarter worth about $967,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.99% of the company’s stock.

About Nova

Nova Ltd. designs, develops, produces, and sells process control systems used in the manufacture of semiconductors in Israel, Taiwan, the United States, China, Korea, and internationally. Its product portfolio includes a set of metrology platforms for dimensional, films, and materials and chemical metrology measurements for process control for various semiconductor manufacturing process steps, including lithography, etch, chemical mechanical planarization, deposition, electrochemical plating, and advanced packaging.