Intech Investment Management LLC Acquires 13,483 Shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) by 121.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 24,577 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 13,483 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Axcelis Technologies were worth $1,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ACLS. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,623 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 90.6% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 364 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in Axcelis Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $213,000. Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 21.8% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 333,426 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $23,296,000 after buying an additional 59,755 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Globeflex Capital L P increased its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Globeflex Capital L P now owns 16,846 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,177,000 after buying an additional 2,419 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on ACLS. William Blair cut shares of Axcelis Technologies from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Craig Hallum decreased their price target on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.00.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Performance

Axcelis Technologies stock opened at $55.90 on Friday. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $53.67 and a fifty-two week high of $158.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 4.05 and a current ratio of 5.41. The stock has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.62. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $63.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.01.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The semiconductor company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.29. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 21.02% and a net margin of 19.75%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to purchase up to 5.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is 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.