Aviva PLC Raises Stock Holdings in Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)

Aviva PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS) by 30.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,132 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,877 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Axcelis Technologies were worth $568,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ACLS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,396,134 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $307,158,000 after purchasing an additional 106,203 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Axcelis Technologies by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,233,282 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $129,310,000 after buying an additional 18,101 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $74,069,000 after buying an additional 290,678 shares during the period. Reinhart Partners LLC. grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 348,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 897,750 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $62,738,000 after acquiring an additional 23,234 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.98% of the company’s stock.

Axcelis Technologies Trading Down 7.5 %

ACLS opened at $45.22 on Friday. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.40 and a 12 month high of $158.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $56.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.32. The firm has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.35, a PEG ratio of 4.52 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 5.41, a quick ratio of 4.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

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

Axcelis Technologies announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, March 12th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 5.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Axcelis Technologies 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.