Synaptics (NASDAQ:SYNA) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Synaptics Incorporated (NASDAQ:SYNA)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Friday after Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $110.00. The stock had previously closed at $91.66, but opened at $83.24. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock. Synaptics shares last traded at $85.46, with a volume of 171,661 shares changing hands.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on SYNA. Craig Hallum downgraded Synaptics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com raised Synaptics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Synaptics from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Synaptics from $135.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Synaptics from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Synaptics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $118.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Synaptics

In other news, insider Vikram Gupta sold 3,616 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.75, for a total transaction of $382,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 31,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,367,820.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Synaptics by 4.4% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 8,849 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $791,000 after buying an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in Synaptics by 23.1% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 8,048 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Synaptics by 92.4% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 433 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management raised its holdings in Synaptics by 139.3% during the third quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 14,357 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $1,284,000 after purchasing an additional 8,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Synaptics during the third quarter worth $31,000. 99.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Synaptics Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.32 and a beta of 1.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $94.43 and a 200-day moving average of $100.75. The company has a quick ratio of 4.04, a current ratio of 4.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Synaptics (NASDAQ:SYNA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The software maker reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.04. Synaptics had a positive return on equity of 3.01% and a negative net margin of 7.54%. The company had revenue of $237.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $235.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 27.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Synaptics Incorporated will post -0.48 EPS for the current year.

About Synaptics

Synaptics Incorporated develops, markets, and sells semiconductor products worldwide. The company offers AudioSmart for voice and audio processing; ConnectSmart for high-speed video/audio/data connectivity; DisplayLink for transmitting compressed video frames across low bandwidth connections; VideoSmart that enables set-top boxes, over-the-top, streaming devices, soundbars, surveillance cameras, and smart displays; and ImagingSmart solutions.