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

Shares of AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $24.35, but opened at $25.76. AXT shares last traded at $25.7980, with a volume of 3,433,485 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXTI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. B. Riley Financial cut AXT from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $9.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Wedbush set a $7.00 price target on shares of AXT and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded AXT from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AXT in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered AXT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.75.

AXT Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.62 and a beta of 1.96. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.98.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David C. Chang sold 25,000 shares of AXT stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.84, for a total transaction of $371,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 132,744 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,969,920.96. This trade represents a 15.85% 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 Morris S. Young sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.05, for a total value of $421,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,495,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,071,546.20. This trade represents a 1.38% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 143,130 shares of company stock valued at $1,713,221. 8.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AXT during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AXT in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $52,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in AXT during the 4th quarter valued at $69,000. Creative Planning acquired a new stake in shares of AXT in the second quarter worth $86,000. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in AXT in the 4th quarter worth about $98,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.52% of the company’s stock.

About AXT

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.