Raiffeisen Bank International AG Decreases Stake in Nova Ltd. $NVMI

Raiffeisen Bank International AG lessened its holdings in shares of Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) by 61.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,784 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 31,416 shares during the quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG owned approximately 0.06% of Nova worth $10,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Nova by 660.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,668 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,966,000 after buying an additional 9,265 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Nova by 51.6% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 376 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in Nova during the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,445,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Nova by 62.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 260 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in Nova in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,886,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.99% of the company’s stock.

Nova Price Performance

Shares of NVMI stock opened at $352.70 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.21 billion, a PE ratio of 43.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $419.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $465.15. Nova Ltd. has a 12 month low of $239.52 and a 12 month high of $615.99.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The semiconductor company reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $254.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $250.33 million. Nova had a net margin of 28.84% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Nova Ltd. will post 9.89 EPS for the current year.

Nova announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, September 2nd that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor company to purchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their target price on Nova from $600.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Nova from $494.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Nova in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Nova from $640.00 to $570.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Nova from $595.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $514.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gabriel Waisman sold 2,966 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.30, for a total value of $1,486,855.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 28,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,394,328.20. This represents a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Yaniv Garty sold 366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $581.20, for a total value of $212,719.20. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,165,887.20. This trade represents a 15.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,942 shares of company stock valued at $3,419,027. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Nova Company Profile

Nova Measuring Instruments Ltd (NASDAQ: NVMI) develops and supplies advanced metrology and process control systems for the semiconductor manufacturing industry. The company’s core product line includes spectroscopic ellipsometry and scatterometry tools designed to measure film thickness, critical dimensions, overlay alignment and other key parameters that drive yield and performance in integrated circuit fabrication.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Rehovot, Israel, Nova Measuring Instruments has established itself as a critical partner to leading semiconductor foundries and device manufacturers.