Franklin Resources Inc. Has $674,000 Stock Position in nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR - Free Report) by 145.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,295 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 38,050 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.13% of nLIGHT worth $674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LASR. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its holdings in nLIGHT by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 2,907 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of nLIGHT in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of nLIGHT in the 4th quarter valued at about $102,000. Moody National Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of nLIGHT during the 4th quarter worth about $115,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its position in nLIGHT by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 11,864 shares of the company's stock worth $124,000 after purchasing an additional 1,772 shares in the last quarter. 83.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

nLIGHT Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ LASR traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $7.20. 313,825 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 325,667. nLIGHT, Inc. has a 1 year low of $6.20 and a 1 year high of $14.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $353.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.99 and a beta of 2.24. The business has a 50 day moving average of $8.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.24.

nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported ($0.42) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.21) by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $47.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $46.62 million. nLIGHT had a negative net margin of 24.16% and a negative return on equity of 19.53%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that nLIGHT, Inc. will post -1.1 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 53,511 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.17, for a total value of $437,184.87. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,267,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,358,963.59. This represents a 4.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LASR. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of nLIGHT from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of nLIGHT from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th.

nLIGHT Profile

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications.