nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) Given Speculative Buy Rating at Benchmark

Benchmark reaffirmed their speculative buy rating on shares of nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) in a report published on Friday, Benzinga reports. Benchmark currently has a $17.00 price target on the stock.

Separately, Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on nLIGHT from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday.

nLIGHT Stock Up 5.0 %

nLIGHT stock traded up $0.58 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $12.14. 240,222 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 179,083. nLIGHT has a fifty-two week low of $8.13 and a fifty-two week high of $15.91. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.27.

nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28) by $0.02. nLIGHT had a negative net margin of 23.81% and a negative return on equity of 17.60%. The firm had revenue of $51.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.08 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that nLIGHT will post -0.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 14,105 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.26, for a total value of $172,927.30. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 146,601 shares in the company, valued at $1,797,328.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 5.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLIGHT

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of nLIGHT by 12.9% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,357,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,513,000 after purchasing an additional 269,000 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its stake in shares of nLIGHT by 18.0% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 1,693,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,867,000 after buying an additional 258,199 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of nLIGHT by 1,251.2% during the 3rd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 250,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,601,000 after buying an additional 231,844 shares during the last quarter. Senvest Management LLC lifted its holdings in nLIGHT by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 1,156,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,616,000 after acquiring an additional 198,609 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in nLIGHT by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,044,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,104,000 after acquiring an additional 154,273 shares during the last quarter. 83.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

nLIGHT Company Profile

nLIGHT, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications.