Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $12.50.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Northland Securities reduced their price target on shares of Harmonic from $14.00 to $12.50 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com raised Harmonic from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price objective on Harmonic from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Harmonic from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Harmonic from $14.00 to $10.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Insider Activity at Harmonic

In other news, CFO Walter Jankovic acquired 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $9.44 per share, with a total value of $113,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $435,457.76. The trade was a 35.16 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David Krall acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $9.78 per share, for a total transaction of $97,800.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 163,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,598,932.20. This trade represents a 6.52 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 32,780 shares of company stock valued at $316,607 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.36% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Harmonic

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Harmonic by 40.3% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 201,386 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $2,934,000 after acquiring an additional 57,888 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Harmonic by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,675,268 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $38,986,000 after purchasing an additional 17,665 shares during the period. Amundi raised its holdings in Harmonic by 113.3% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 71,976 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $962,000 after buying an additional 38,230 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Harmonic in the 4th quarter worth about $4,292,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Harmonic by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 39,041 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,207 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.38% of the company's stock.

Harmonic Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HLIT traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $8.85. 122,470 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,261,174. The company has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 26.83 and a beta of 0.92. Harmonic has a twelve month low of $7.91 and a twelve month high of $15.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.79.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.01. Harmonic had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 5.78%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Harmonic will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Harmonic declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the communications equipment provider to purchase up to 15.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Harmonic Company Profile

Harmonic Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband solutions worldwide. The company operates through Broadband and Video segments. The Broadband segment sells broadband access solutions and related services, including cOS software-based broadband access solutions to broadband operators; and cOS central cloud services, a subscription service for cOS customers.