Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the ten brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $126.56.

AEIS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Advanced Energy Industries from $138.00 to $136.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup raised Advanced Energy Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $110.00 to $138.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th.

Insider Transactions at Advanced Energy Industries

In related news, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total transaction of $206,992.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at $451,760.04. This represents a 31.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advanced Energy Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AEIS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,913,669 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $568,168,000 after acquiring an additional 69,908 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Advanced Energy Industries by 1.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 884,402 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $93,094,000 after purchasing an additional 15,030 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 774,586 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $89,565,000 after purchasing an additional 138,814 shares in the last quarter. Summit Partners Public Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $71,494,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries during the 4th quarter worth $68,949,000. 99.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Advanced Energy Industries stock traded down $7.74 during trading on Monday, hitting $107.43. 535,975 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 308,697. The company has a current ratio of 4.42, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $118.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.45. Advanced Energy Industries has a 1-year low of $89.11 and a 1-year high of $132.16.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.03). Advanced Energy Industries had a return on equity of 8.90% and a net margin of 3.66%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Advanced Energy Industries will post 3.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Energy Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. Advanced Energy Industries's payout ratio is 27.97%.

Advanced Energy Industries Company Profile

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.