nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $55.88 and last traded at $55.1670, with a volume of 12615 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.84.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LASR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of nLight from $33.50 to $40.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of nLight in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of nLight from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of nLight from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.00.

nLight Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.73. The stock has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -60.18 and a beta of 2.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 4.36 and a current ratio of 5.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at nLight

In other news, CAO James Nias sold 1,200 shares of nLight stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $36,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 99,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,985,360. This trade represents a 1.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 31,748 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.51, for a total value of $1,190,867.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,285,020 shares in the company, valued at $85,711,100.20. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 128,702 shares of company stock valued at $4,658,166. 4.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On nLight

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of nLight by 2,027.6% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 342,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,831,000 after purchasing an additional 326,002 shares in the last quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in nLight in the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,007,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in shares of nLight in the fourth quarter valued at $132,000. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of nLight by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 93,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,507,000 after buying an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Polen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of nLight by 18.9% during the 4th quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 61,624 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,312,000 after acquiring an additional 9,806 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

About nLight

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.