Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS) Trading Up 7.9% Following Analyst Upgrade

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) shares were up 7.9% on Thursday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $130.00 to $135.00. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Advanced Energy Industries traded as high as $118.05 and last traded at $119.95. Approximately 115,258 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 249,561 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.17.

AEIS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup upgraded Advanced Energy Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $110.00 to $138.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Advanced Energy Industries from $138.00 to $136.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $140.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $126.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,000 shares of Advanced Energy Industries stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.72, for a total value of $111,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,092 shares in the company, valued at $568,878.24. This trade represents a 16.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 535.3% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 216 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries by 200.0% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 312 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries in the third quarter worth about $41,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 61.6% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 354 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Advanced Energy Industries by 68.4% during the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 458 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Up 0.6 %

The company has a current ratio of 4.62, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market cap of $4.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 109.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.45. The stock's fifty day moving average is $117.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.57.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.09 by ($0.03). Advanced Energy Industries had a return on equity of 9.02% and a net margin of 2.91%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Energy Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. Advanced Energy Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.09%.

About Advanced Energy Industries

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.