Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) Sets New 12-Month Low - Should You Sell?

Shares of Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $8.15 and last traded at $8.30, with a volume of 363179 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Harmonic in a report on Friday, February 21st. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Harmonic from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Northland Securities reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on shares of Harmonic from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Harmonic presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $12.50.

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Harmonic Stock Down 0.0 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $974.70 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.06 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $10.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. Harmonic had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 5.78%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Harmonic Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Harmonic announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, February 10th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the communications equipment provider to purchase up to 15.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Harmonic news, CFO Walter Jankovic purchased 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $9.44 per share, with a total value of $113,280.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $435,457.76. This represents a 35.16 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel T. Whalen acquired 3,000 shares of Harmonic stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $10.15 per share, for a total transaction of $30,450.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,840 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $89,726. The trade was a 51.37 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 32,780 shares of company stock valued at $316,607 over the last 90 days. 2.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Harmonic by 9,004.4% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 4,719,837 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $62,443,000 after buying an additional 4,667,996 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Harmonic by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,788,714 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $103,045,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300,128 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL increased its holdings in shares of Harmonic by 198.2% in the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 797,176 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $10,547,000 after acquiring an additional 529,833 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Harmonic by 175.9% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 681,425 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $9,015,000 after acquiring an additional 434,481 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC raised its position in shares of Harmonic by 1,583.7% during the fourth quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 435,852 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $5,766,000 after purchasing an additional 409,966 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.38% of the company's stock.

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.