Arteris (NASDAQ:AIP) Shares Down 9% on Insider Selling

Arteris, Inc. (NASDAQ:AIP) shares were down 9% on Tuesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $31.36 and last traded at $31.6980. Approximately 464,729 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 744,900 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.82.

Specifically, CFO Nicholas B. Hawkins sold 5,377 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.78, for a total value of $208,520.06. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 103,172 shares in the company, valued at $4,001,010.16. This represents a 4.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Paul L. Alpern sold 3,648 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.78, for a total transaction of $141,469.44. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 76,736 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,975,822.08. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In related news, COO Laurent R. Moll sold 5,599 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.78, for a total value of $217,129.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 221,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,597,409.66. The trade was a 2.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on AIP. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Arteris from $16.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Arteris from $20.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Arteris from $22.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Arteris from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Arteris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.75.

Arteris News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Arteris this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Arteris recently reported quarterly results that beat expectations, with a smaller-than-expected loss and revenue above analyst estimates, which supports the longer-term investment case. Arteris earnings and stock overview
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts currently have a mixed view on Arteris, with a consensus rating of Hold and a price target near recent trading levels, suggesting valuation is still being debated. Arteris analyst ratings
• Negative Sentiment: CEO K. Charles Janac sold 192,686 shares, and CFO Nicholas B. Hawkins sold 5,377 shares, both disclosed as part of tax-related equity award withholding, which can still raise concern when multiple insiders sell at once. CEO SEC filing CFO SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: VP Paul Alpern and COO Laurent R. Moll also sold shares, adding to the perception of broad insider distribution rather than insider accumulation. VP SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Major shareholder Bayview Legacy, LLC sold 192,686 shares, which may add extra pressure because large-holder selling can signal reduced conviction even when the move is disclosed for compliance reasons. Major shareholder SEC filing

Arteris Trading Down 9.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73. The company’s fifty day moving average is $36.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.67. The company has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.19 and a beta of 1.92.

Arteris (NASDAQ:AIP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.94 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.03 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Arteris, Inc. will post -0.54 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arteris

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Arteris by 33.7% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,150 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Arteris by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 13,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 1,148 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in Arteris by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 21,159 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 1,504 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in Arteris by 75.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 2,595 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its stake in shares of Arteris by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 23,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 2,613 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.36% of the company’s stock.

About Arteris

Arteris, Inc is a fabless semiconductor intellectual property (IP) company specializing in on-chip interconnect solutions and system IP for advanced integrated circuits. The company’s core products include its FlexNoC network-on-chip (NoC) fabrics, Ncore cache coherent interconnect IP, and CodaCache memory subsystem IP. These technologies enable semiconductor and systems companies to design scalable, energy-efficient chips for applications ranging from automotive and artificial intelligence (AI) to 5G communications and high-performance computing.

Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, Arteris serves a global customer base across North America, Europe, and Asia.