Nova Ltd. $NVMI Shares Sold by Raiffeisen Bank International AG

Raiffeisen Bank International AG trimmed its stake in Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) by 61.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 19,784 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 31,416 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s holdings in Nova were worth $10,295,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Phoenix Financial Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Nova by 286.3% in the fourth quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 508,641 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $167,115,000 after buying an additional 376,974 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in Nova by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 145,427 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $48,642,000 after acquiring an additional 23,280 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC acquired a new position in Nova during the 4th quarter worth about $14,056,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Nova by 94.3% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 27,115 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $9,077,000 after acquiring an additional 13,160 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Nova by 51.1% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,332 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,224,000 after acquiring an additional 4,844 shares during the period. 82.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gabriel Waisman sold 2,966 shares of Nova stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were 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 owned 28,714 shares in the company, valued at $14,394,328.20. The trade was a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Sarit Sagiv sold 454 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $536.52, for a total transaction of $243,580.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,046,750.52. This trade represents a 18.88% 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 6,942 shares of company stock worth $3,419,027 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Nova Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ NVMI opened at $352.70 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $11.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.76. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $419.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $465.15. Nova Ltd. has a 1-year low of $239.52 and a 1-year high of $615.99.

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

Nova declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, September 2nd that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the semiconductor company to buy up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on NVMI shares. Evercore set a $475.00 price target on shares of Nova in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Nova from $494.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Nova from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Nova in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on shares of Nova from $640.00 to $570.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $514.44.

About Nova

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.