Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Onto Innovation Inc. (NYSE:ONTO - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday after Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on the stock from $200.00 to $180.00. The stock had previously closed at $120.47, but opened at $114.85. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Onto Innovation shares last traded at $115.38, with a volume of 100,165 shares trading hands.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on ONTO. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Onto Innovation from $240.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Onto Innovation in a report on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Onto Innovation in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Onto Innovation from $245.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Onto Innovation in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $218.13.

Insider Transactions at Onto Innovation

In other news, CEO Michael P. Plisinski sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.19, for a total transaction of $7,671,650.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 150,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,986,341.48. This represents a 18.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Onto Innovation

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in Onto Innovation by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 3,718 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $772,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Onto Innovation by 1,296.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 217,190 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $45,079,000 after acquiring an additional 201,640 shares in the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Onto Innovation by 6.4% in the third quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 16,749 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $3,476,000 after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Onto Innovation by 108.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 2,370 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $492,000 after acquiring an additional 1,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Onto Innovation by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,281,801 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $288,320,000 after purchasing an additional 54,868 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.35% of the company's stock.

Onto Innovation Stock Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $135.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 28.30, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.46.

Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.10. Onto Innovation had a return on equity of 14.24% and a net margin of 20.43%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Onto Innovation Inc. will post 6.26 earnings per share for the current year.

About Onto Innovation

Onto Innovation Inc engages in the design, development, manufacture, and support of process control tools that performs optical metrology. The company offers lithography systems and process control analytical software. It also offers process and yield management solutions, and device packaging and test facilities through standalone systems for optical metrology, macro-defect inspection, packaging lithography, and transparent and opaque thin film measurements.