AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $63.95 and last traded at $63.2530, with a volume of 5744080 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AXTI shares. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of AXT from $8.50 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Northland Securities set a $20.00 target price on shares of AXT in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on shares of AXT to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC lowered shares of AXT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AXT in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.80.

AXT Trading Up 14.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a PE ratio of -129.16 and a beta of 1.74. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $30.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.73.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.01). AXT had a negative net margin of 24.07% and a negative return on equity of 9.50%. The company had revenue of $23.04 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.24 million. As a group, research analysts expect that AXT Inc will post -0.12 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Morris S. Young sold 159,536 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.32, for a total transaction of $6,911,099.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,482,038 shares in the company, valued at $107,521,886.16. The trade was a 6.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jesse Chen sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.13, for a total transaction of $706,950.00. Following the sale, the director owned 123,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,825,833.56. This represents a 10.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 502,278 shares of company stock worth $21,196,754. 8.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AXT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Destination Wealth Management bought a new position in AXT in the third quarter worth approximately $458,000. Penn Capital Management Company LLC bought a new stake in shares of AXT during the 3rd quarter worth $729,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its stake in AXT by 2,333,600.0% in the third quarter. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 23,337 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 23,336 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. purchased a new stake in AXT during the third quarter valued at about $112,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in AXT by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 22,952 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 2,540 shares in the last quarter. 49.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AXT

AXT, Inc (NASDAQ: AXTI) is a global supplier of compound and single-element semiconductor substrates, offering a range of materials critical for high-performance electronic and optoelectronic devices. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Fremont, California, AXT specializes in the development, manufacture and distribution of wafers composed of gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), gallium nitride (GaN) and other compound semiconductor materials. These substrates serve as the foundational platforms for devices used in data communications, wireless infrastructure, advanced computing, consumer electronics and photovoltaic applications.

AXT’s product portfolio encompasses a variety of wafer sizes, dopant concentrations and crystal orientations, tailored to meet the precise specifications of its customers.