Ichor (NASDAQ:ICHR) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Ichor Holdings, Ltd. (NASDAQ:ICHR) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday after Stifel Nicolaus upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The stock had previously closed at $42.59, but opened at $45.15. Stifel Nicolaus now has a $55.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $30.00. Ichor shares last traded at $48.9850, with a volume of 333,441 shares.

ICHR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. B. Riley Financial raised Ichor from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Ichor from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Craig Hallum reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Ichor in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Ichor in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Ichor from $36.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Greg Swyt sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.20, for a total value of $153,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 78,679 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,028,364.80. This represents a 3.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas M. Rohrs sold 53,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.48, for a total transaction of $2,451,735.84. Following the sale, the director owned 53,024 shares in the company, valued at $2,411,531.52. The trade was a 50.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 120,259 shares of company stock valued at $5,689,250. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ichor

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ICHR. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Ichor in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Ichor during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Ichor by 64.8% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,500 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Ichor during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in shares of Ichor by 607.7% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 3,234 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 2,777 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.81% of the company’s stock.

Ichor Trading Up 15.6%

The stock has a market cap of $1.71 billion, a P/E ratio of -31.88 and a beta of 1.76. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $37.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 3.16 and a quick ratio of 1.38.

Ichor Company Profile

Ichor Holdings Ltd. is a global supplier of critical subsystems used in the fabrication of semiconductor devices. The company specializes in the design, engineering and manufacturing of gas delivery systems, vacuum pumps and abatement solutions that manage process gases and by-products in wafer-processing tools. Its modular subsystems are designed to integrate with lithography, etch, deposition and cleaning equipment, helping to ensure precise control of gas flow, pressure and purity throughout the chip-manufacturing cycle.

Founded in the mid-1980s and headquartered in Fremont, California, Ichor has expanded its footprint across Asia, Europe and North America.