5,688 Shares in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) Bought by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 5,688 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 1.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,233,282 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $129,310,000 after buying an additional 18,101 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. lifted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,036,112 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $72,393,000 after acquiring an additional 348,504 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 874,516 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $91,708,000 after acquiring an additional 28,141 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 781,154 shares during the period. 89.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Performance

ACLS opened at $42.68 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.94, a PEG ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.26. The company has a quick ratio of 4.05, a current ratio of 5.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.40 and a 52-week high of $158.61.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The semiconductor company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.29. Axcelis Technologies had a return on equity of 21.02% and a net margin of 19.75%. Equities analysts anticipate that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, March 12th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 5.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ACLS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. William Blair downgraded shares of Axcelis Technologies from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Craig Hallum cut their price target on Axcelis Technologies from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.00.

Axcelis Technologies Company Profile

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.