Norges Bank Invests $36.05 Million in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 515,957 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $36,050,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.59% of Axcelis Technologies as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ACLS. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 78,037.4% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 782,155 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $54,649,000 after buying an additional 781,154 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,036,112 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $72,393,000 after purchasing an additional 348,504 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 61.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 820,116 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $57,302,000 after purchasing an additional 313,689 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 37.8% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,060,096 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $74,069,000 after purchasing an additional 290,678 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,396,134 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $307,158,000 after purchasing an additional 106,203 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Axcelis Technologies Stock Down 6.2 %

Axcelis Technologies stock traded down $3.05 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $45.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 105,157 shares, compared to its average volume of 698,457. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $40.40 and a fifty-two week high of $158.61. The company has a quick ratio of 4.05, a current ratio of 5.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.46, a P/E/G ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.59. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.72.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The semiconductor company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.29. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 21.02% and a net margin of 19.75%. On average, research analysts expect that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 5.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Craig Hallum reduced their price target on Axcelis Technologies from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, William Blair lowered Axcelis Technologies from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $154.00.

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.