Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $82.74, but opened at $89.44. Axcelis Technologies shares last traded at $84.91, with a volume of 354,109 shares.

The semiconductor company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 16.26% and a net margin of 17.69%.The business had revenue of $252.42 million during the quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ACLS shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Axcelis Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Benchmark raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. B. Riley reduced their price target on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $85.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.80.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACLS. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 38.2% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 12,168 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $604,000 after purchasing an additional 3,364 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 57.5% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,783 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 2,112 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in Axcelis Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $236,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 194,038 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $9,638,000 after purchasing an additional 5,479 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 16.6% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 25,063 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 3,561 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Down 2.7%

The company has a current ratio of 6.01, a quick ratio of 4.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.80 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.83.

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.