Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $452.73, but opened at $488.21. Nova shares last traded at $477.1150, with a volume of 39,901 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on NVMI. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Nova from $500.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Nova in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Nova from $520.00 to $595.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Nova from $520.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Nova from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $556.67.

Nova Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $15.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.91, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.74. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $511.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $471.59.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The semiconductor company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.13. Nova had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 29.21%.The firm had revenue of $235.31 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $227.02 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.18 earnings per share. Nova’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. Nova has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.340-2.480 EPS. Research analysts predict that Nova Ltd. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Nova

In related news, Director Eitan Oppenhaim sold 1,504 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $519.48, for a total transaction of $781,297.92. Following the sale, the director owned 6,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,463,892.64. The trade was a 18.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Yaniv Garty sold 426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.49, for a total transaction of $219,172.74. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,038 shares in the company, valued at $1,048,530.62. The trade was a 17.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,798 shares of company stock valued at $4,125,266. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nova

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nova in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in Nova during the third quarter worth $40,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in Nova by 75.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 130 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in Nova by 2,042.9% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 150 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Nova in the fourth quarter valued at $74,000. 82.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nova Company Profile

Nova Measuring Instruments Ltd (NASDAQ: NVMI) develops and supplies advanced metrology and process control systems for the semiconductor manufacturing industry. The company’s core product line includes spectroscopic ellipsometry and scatterometry tools designed to measure film thickness, critical dimensions, overlay alignment and other key parameters that drive yield and performance in integrated circuit fabrication.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Rehovot, Israel, Nova Measuring Instruments has established itself as a critical partner to leading semiconductor foundries and device manufacturers.