FormFactor (NASDAQ:FORM) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of FormFactor (NASDAQ:FORM) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

FORM has been the topic of several other reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of FormFactor in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Zacks Research cut shares of FormFactor from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of FormFactor from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Evercore set a $150.00 price target on shares of FormFactor in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of FormFactor from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.73.

FormFactor Trading Down 10.2%

Shares of FormFactor stock opened at $87.53 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $116.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.43. FormFactor has a 12-month low of $47.33 and a 12-month high of $160.27. The company has a current ratio of 3.68, a quick ratio of 3.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a PE ratio of 39.97 and a beta of 1.18.

FormFactor (NASDAQ:FORM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The semiconductor company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $280.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $270.52 million. FormFactor had a return on equity of 18.40% and a net margin of 17.72%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 38.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.33 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that FormFactor will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mike Slessor sold 17,510 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.73, for a total value of $1,833,822.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 466,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,876,862.62. The trade was a 3.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Kelley Steven-Waiss sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.10, for a total transaction of $201,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 24,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,347,338.60. This trade represents a 7.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 46,710 shares of company stock valued at $5,520,564 in the last three months. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FormFactor

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of FormFactor during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,676,772,000. Andar Capital Management HK Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of FormFactor during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of FormFactor during the second quarter worth approximately $285,257,000. Primecap Management Co. CA bought a new stake in shares of FormFactor in the second quarter worth $270,300,000. Finally, Reinhart Partners LLC. increased its stake in shares of FormFactor by 3.1% in the third quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 659,667 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $98,495,000 after buying an additional 19,745 shares during the last quarter. 98.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about FormFactor

Here are the key news stories impacting FormFactor this week:

• Positive Sentiment: FormFactor reported third-quarter revenue of $280.5 million, up 38.4% year over year, while non-GAAP earnings reached $1.04 per share versus the $0.86 consensus estimate. Revenue, gross margin and earnings exceeded the high end of management’s outlook. FormFactor’s Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Increase Y/Y
• Positive Sentiment: Demand for probe cards, DRAM, photonics and foundry and logic applications is benefiting from AI-driven chip complexity. Growth in HBM4 testing and co-packaged optics could support longer-term expansion. FORM’s HBM and Foundry Testing Gain From AI Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Zacks characterized FORM as more attractive than Cohu because of its stronger profitability, cash generation and established AI-related revenue, while Zacks also added the stock to its Rank #1 Strong Buy list. FORM vs. COHU: Which Semiconductor Testing Stock is a Better Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Fourth-quarter guidance calls for revenue of $275 million to $295 million and EPS of $0.86 to $1.04, both above consensus at the midpoint for EPS but implying only modest sequential revenue growth.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are concerned that FormFactor’s existing manufacturing footprint is approaching capacity limits. Productivity gains may moderate until the Farmers Branch, Texas, facility ramps, while start-up inefficiencies are expected to pressure near-term profitability and gross margins. FormFactor Sinks Despite Record Quarter as Factory Nears Capacity Limits
• Negative Sentiment: Recent trading data showed substantial insider selling, with no reported insider purchases over the past six months, adding a cautious signal for investors.

About FormFactor

FormFactor, Inc is a semiconductor test and measurement company that designs and manufactures equipment and components used to evaluate integrated circuits during the wafer fabrication and production process. Its products help semiconductor manufacturers and suppliers measure electrical performance, identify defects and improve the development and manufacturing of advanced chips.

The company’s portfolio includes probe cards used for wafer-level testing, as well as probe stations, analytical systems and related accessories for semiconductor engineering and production applications.