Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Onto Innovation from $400.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Onto Innovation from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Onto Innovation from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Onto Innovation in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Onto Innovation from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Onto Innovation presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $352.08.

Onto Innovation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ONTO opened at $203.54 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $248.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $259.13. The company has a quick ratio of 8.33, a current ratio of 6.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Onto Innovation has a 12-month low of $121.57 and a 12-month high of $386.46. The company has a market cap of $9.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.66.

Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The semiconductor company reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $409.75 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $392.06 million. Onto Innovation had a return on equity of 17.18% and a net margin of 11.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 87.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Onto Innovation will post 8.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Onto Innovation

In other Onto Innovation news, Director David Miller sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 10,692 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,207,600. The trade was a 15.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Susan D. Lynch sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.30, for a total transaction of $302,300.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,684 shares in the company, valued at approximately $811,373.20. This trade represents a 27.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Onto Innovation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ONTO. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Onto Innovation by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 987 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $374,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Everhart Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Onto Innovation by 6.6% during the third quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 722 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Onto Innovation by 16.5% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 395 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Onto Innovation by 4.9% in the first quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,368 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Onto Innovation in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.35% of the company’s stock.

More Onto Innovation News

These are some of the ONTO news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Evercore initiated coverage with a “Strong Buy” rating, adding an upbeat analyst view of the company’s prospects. Article: Onto Innovation Stock Rated Strong-Buy in New Coverage at Evercore
• Positive Sentiment: Q3 operating cash flow reached $79 million, while reported gross-margin expansion and operational efficiencies support the profitability outlook. Article: Onto Innovation’s Q3 Cash Flow Hits $79M
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports flag ONTO’s premium valuation, customer-concentration exposure and weaker capital-return profile as risks that could limit upside even as earnings and demand grow. A separate report describes a pessimistic Morgan Stanley outlook, while analyst target cuts—including from Jefferies—add to pressure on sentiment. Article: ONTO Falls as Growth Strength Collides With Valuation

Onto Innovation Company Profile

Onto Innovation develops process-control and inspection solutions used in semiconductor manufacturing. Its products include metrology and inspection systems, lithography equipment, and software that help manufacturers monitor production processes and identify defects. The company serves producers of semiconductor devices, advanced packaging, and specialty components. Its technologies support applications ranging from traditional wafer fabrication to newer packaging methods used in complex chips.