Craig Hallum Increases Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) Price Target to $174.00

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by Craig Hallum from $130.00 to $174.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the semiconductor company's stock. Craig Hallum's target price points to a potential upside of 16.98% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research report on Friday. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Axcelis Technologies from $125.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. B. Riley lifted their target price on Axcelis Technologies from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Benchmark lowered their target price on Axcelis Technologies from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $169.80.

Axcelis Technologies Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of ACLS traded up $4.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $148.74. The company had a trading volume of 644,007 shares, compared to its average volume of 620,312. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $127.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.70. The company has a quick ratio of 2.87, a current ratio of 4.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Axcelis Technologies has a 1-year low of $93.77 and a 1-year high of $201.00. The stock has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.60.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The semiconductor company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $252.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $242.55 million. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 22.16% and a return on equity of 30.22%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Axcelis Technologies will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Axcelis Technologies news, Director John T. Kurtzweil sold 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.42, for a total value of $137,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 33,146 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,792,565.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.43% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Axcelis Technologies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 4.8% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,506 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Lincoln National Corp lifted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 4,319 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $560,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 17.5% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 670 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 9,839 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,276,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 7,310 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $815,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.98% of the company's stock.

About Axcelis Technologies

Axcelis Technologies, Inc designs, manufactures, and services ion implantation and other processing equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips in the United States, Europe, and Asia Pacific. The company offers high energy, high current, and medium current implanters for various application requirements.