Amundi Buys 64,256 Shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Amundi grew its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) by 15.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 489,251 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 64,256 shares during the period. Amundi’s holdings in Axcelis Technologies were worth $35,764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ACLS. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 78,037.4% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 782,155 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $54,649,000 after acquiring an additional 781,154 shares in the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,036,112 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $72,393,000 after buying an additional 348,504 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 61.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 820,116 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $57,302,000 after buying an additional 313,689 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 157.1% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 273,671 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $28,694,000 after buying an additional 167,235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in Axcelis Technologies in the third quarter worth approximately $13,874,000. Institutional investors own 89.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on ACLS. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. William Blair downgraded shares of Axcelis Technologies from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Craig Hallum reduced their price objective on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.00.

Axcelis Technologies Price Performance

NASDAQ ACLS opened at $59.42 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.35. The company has a current ratio of 5.41, a quick ratio of 4.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.67 and a 12-month high of $158.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.66, a P/E/G ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.62.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The semiconductor company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.29. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 19.75% and a return on equity of 21.02%. Analysts forecast that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, March 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to purchase up to 5.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.