MaxLinear (NASDAQ:MXL) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Shares of MaxLinear, Inc. (NASDAQ:MXL - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $20.29, but opened at $19.51. MaxLinear shares last traded at $20.13, with a volume of 77,935 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MXL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Susquehanna cut shares of MaxLinear from a "positive" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $15.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Benchmark increased their price target on MaxLinear from $22.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of MaxLinear in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $14.00 price objective on the stock. Craig Hallum decreased their target price on shares of MaxLinear from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of MaxLinear in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, MaxLinear presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $23.14.

MaxLinear Stock Up 3.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.95. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $16.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.72 and a beta of 1.87.

MaxLinear (NASDAQ:MXL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The semiconductor company reported ($0.36) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.32) by ($0.04). MaxLinear had a negative return on equity of 19.22% and a negative net margin of 57.37%. The company had revenue of $81.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.40 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.02) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 40.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MaxLinear, Inc. will post -1.66 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at MaxLinear

In other MaxLinear news, insider Steven G. Litchfield sold 32,000 shares of MaxLinear stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.35, for a total transaction of $651,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 365,868 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,445,413.80. This trade represents a 8.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ted L. Tewksbury III sold 5,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.36, for a total value of $89,088.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 69,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,070,853.12. This represents a 7.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 48,900 shares of company stock valued at $927,278. Company insiders own 8.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MaxLinear

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MXL. Hood River Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MaxLinear in the second quarter worth $24,184,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in MaxLinear in the 3rd quarter worth $16,696,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in MaxLinear by 307.9% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,044,648 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $21,039,000 after acquiring an additional 788,558 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in MaxLinear by 184.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 456,929 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $6,616,000 after acquiring an additional 296,339 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in shares of MaxLinear by 36.6% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,089,065 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $15,770,000 after purchasing an additional 291,874 shares during the last quarter. 90.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MaxLinear

MaxLinear, Inc provides communications systems-on-chip solutions worldwide. Its products integrate various portions of a high-speed communication system, including radio frequency, high-performance analog, mixed-signal, digital signal processing, security engines, data compression and networking layers, and power management.