AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $15.01, but opened at $15.61. AXT shares last traded at $14.93, with a volume of 522,415 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Northland Securities set a $20.00 target price on shares of AXT in a research note on Monday. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on AXT from $5.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded AXT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of AXT in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, B. Riley raised their price objective on AXT from $4.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $11.50.

AXT Trading Down 0.5%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $10.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.57. The company has a market capitalization of $696.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -28.58 and a beta of 1.97.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.12) by $0.08. AXT had a negative net margin of 25.22% and a negative return on equity of 11.19%. The business had revenue of $27.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.85 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AXT Inc will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AXT

In other news, CEO Morris S. Young sold 80,000 shares of AXT stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.65, for a total transaction of $692,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,439,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,101,588.50. This trade represents a 3.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David C. Chang sold 100,000 shares of AXT stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.94, for a total transaction of $894,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 207,744 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,857,231.36. This represents a 32.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 326,767 shares of company stock worth $3,329,808. 8.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AXT

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Citadel Advisors LLC boosted its position in AXT by 339.6% during the third quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 405,978 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,823,000 after acquiring an additional 313,618 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its stake in AXT by 75.0% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 530,269 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 227,333 shares during the period. Penn Capital Management Company LLC bought a new position in shares of AXT during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $729,000. Destination Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of AXT during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $458,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its stake in shares of AXT by 39.7% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 205,822 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $924,000 after acquiring an additional 58,542 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 49.52% of the company’s stock.

AXT Company Profile

AXT, Inc (NASDAQ: AXTI) is a global supplier of compound and single-element semiconductor substrates, offering a range of materials critical for high-performance electronic and optoelectronic devices. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Fremont, California, AXT specializes in the development, manufacture and distribution of wafers composed of gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), gallium nitride (GaN) and other compound semiconductor materials. These substrates serve as the foundational platforms for devices used in data communications, wireless infrastructure, advanced computing, consumer electronics and photovoltaic applications.

AXT’s product portfolio encompasses a variety of wafer sizes, dopant concentrations and crystal orientations, tailored to meet the precise specifications of its customers.