Semtech (NASDAQ:SMTC) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Semtech Corporation (NASDAQ:SMTC)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after Northland Securities upgraded the stock from a market perform rating to an outperform rating. The stock had previously closed at $140.80, but opened at $149.40. Northland Securities now has a $182.00 price target on the stock. Semtech shares last traded at $143.4860, with a volume of 753,203 shares changing hands.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on SMTC. Craig Hallum lifted their target price on shares of Semtech from $105.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Semtech from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup lowered Semtech from a “buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Semtech in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Finally, B. Riley Financial upped their price target on Semtech from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $204.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Asaf Silberstein sold 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.80, for a total transaction of $1,086,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 96,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,378,963.60. This represents a 8.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Hong Q. Hou sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.00, for a total value of $266,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,618,267. This represents a 2.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,734 shares of company stock worth $3,133,986. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Semtech

Here are the key news stories impacting Semtech this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly beat: Fiscal Q2 revenue rose 32.7% year over year to $341.9 million, exceeding the $328.7 million consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS was $0.71 versus expectations of $0.61, up from $0.41 a year earlier. Chipmaker Semtech Smashes Sales, Earnings Targets
• Positive Sentiment: Strong forward guidance: Semtech forecast fiscal Q3 revenue of approximately $405 million to $415 million and adjusted EPS of $1.02 to $1.08, substantially above analyst estimates of $359.3 million and $0.69, respectively. Semtech Dumps Cellular Business to Double Down on Data Centers
• Positive Sentiment: Data-center momentum: Data-center sales reportedly jumped 91%, supported by AI infrastructure demand. Management highlighted a ramp toward 1.6-terabit products, record backlog and capacity expansion, while GaN demand is reportedly outpacing supply. SMTC Q2 Earnings Call Spotlights 1.6T Data Center Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: Analysts raised price targets following the results, with Needham maintaining a Buy rating and a $200 target; other published targets include $200 to $215. Analysts Revise Their Forecasts on Semtech
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually high call-option activity reflected increased bullish speculation, but options positioning does not guarantee sustained buying.
• Negative Sentiment: Semtech trades at a high earnings multiple, and reported insider activity shows executives have sold shares without recorded purchases during the past six months, potentially limiting enthusiasm among risk-conscious investors.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Semtech

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Semtech by 900.0% in the 2nd quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Semtech during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Semtech during the first quarter worth about $33,000. IFP Advisors Inc acquired a new position in shares of Semtech during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in Semtech in the 2nd quarter valued at $55,000.

Semtech Trading Up 2.8%

The company’s 50-day moving average is $135.94 and its 200-day moving average is $118.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.16 and a beta of 2.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 2.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Semtech (NASDAQ:SMTC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 25th. The semiconductor company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.10. Semtech had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 23.54%. The firm had revenue of $341.87 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $328.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. Semtech has set its Q3 2027 guidance at 1.020-1.080 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Semtech Corporation will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Semtech Company Profile

Semtech Corporation is a leading supplier of high-performance analog and mixed-signal semiconductors and advanced algorithms. The company’s products address a broad range of applications in the Internet of Things (IoT), data center and telecom, industrial, home automation, automotive, and aerospace markets. Semtech’s portfolio includes power management, signal integrity, protection devices, wireless and sensing technologies that enable smarter, more connected systems worldwide.

A core offering from Semtech is its LoRa® technology, a low-power, long-range wireless communication platform that has become a de facto standard for global IoT deployments.