Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ:AEHR) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ:AEHR) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $41.64, but opened at $44.04. Aehr Test Systems shares last traded at $43.78, with a volume of 683,550 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. William Blair upgraded Aehr Test Systems from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Zacks Research raised shares of Aehr Test Systems from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Lake Street Capital assumed coverage on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Aehr Test Systems in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.00.

Aehr Test Systems Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $28.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.14. The stock has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -154.89 and a beta of 2.22.

Aehr Test Systems (NASDAQ:AEHR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $9.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.45 million. Aehr Test Systems had a negative net margin of 16.63% and a negative return on equity of 4.57%. On average, analysts forecast that Aehr Test Systems will post 0.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Aehr Test Systems

In other news, Director Rhea J. Posedel sold 13,998 shares of Aehr Test Systems stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.02, for a total transaction of $420,219.96. Following the sale, the director directly owned 456,979 shares in the company, valued at $13,718,509.58. The trade was a 2.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura Oliphant sold 4,546 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.40, for a total transaction of $142,744.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,432 shares in the company, valued at $578,764.80. This trade represents a 19.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aehr Test Systems

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEHR. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Aehr Test Systems by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 59,219 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,196,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares during the period. State of Wyoming increased its position in Aehr Test Systems by 26.7% in the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,777 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Aehr Test Systems in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Aehr Test Systems by 3,448.3% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,029 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Aehr Test Systems by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 15,576 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $201,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.69% of the company’s stock.

Aehr Test Systems Company Profile

Aehr Test Systems develops, manufactures and sells semiconductor test and burn-in equipment used by device manufacturers to ensure quality and reliability of integrated circuits. Its products are designed for wafer-level reliability assessment, functional test and stress screening of memory devices, system-on-chips, optical components and power semiconductors. By focusing on wafer-level burn-in and testing processes, the company helps reduce cost and improve yield for high-volume semiconductor production.

The company’s product portfolio includes FOX series wafer probe test and burn-in systems as well as ABTS burn-in ovens.