Wasatch Advisors LP Lowers Stock Holdings in Nova Ltd. $NVMI

Wasatch Advisors LP reduced its position in shares of Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) by 39.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 512,690 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 339,951 shares during the period. Nova makes up about 1.8% of Wasatch Advisors LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in Nova were worth $278,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVMI. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Nova in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nova during the third quarter worth $40,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Nova by 75.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 130 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in shares of Nova by 2,042.9% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 150 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nova in the fourth quarter valued at about $74,000. 82.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sarit Sagiv sold 454 shares of Nova stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $536.52, for a total value of $243,580.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,046,750.52. This trade represents a 18.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Yaniv Garty sold 366 shares of the business’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 transaction, the director directly owned 2,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,165,887.20. This trade represents a 15.43% 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. Insiders have sold 7,798 shares of company stock valued at $4,125,266 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Nova Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of Nova stock opened at $395.95 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.00, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.78. Nova Ltd. has a 12-month low of $232.73 and a 12-month high of $615.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $476.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $474.97.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The semiconductor company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.10. The company 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Nova Ltd. will post 9.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NVMI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Evercore set a $475.00 price target on shares of Nova in a research report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on shares of Nova from $640.00 to $570.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Nova from $465.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Nova from $494.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on Nova from $600.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $514.44.

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.