nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on LASR. Craig Hallum lifted their target price on shares of nLight from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of nLight from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of nLight in a report on Friday, May 8th. William Blair began coverage on nLight in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on nLight from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $80.94.

nLight Stock Performance

nLight stock opened at $69.25 on Friday. nLight has a 52-week low of $18.51 and a 52-week high of $86.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $70.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.60. The firm has a market cap of $3.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -230.83 and a beta of 2.30.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.12. nLight had a negative net margin of 5.08% and a negative return on equity of 4.18%. The firm had revenue of $80.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.14 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.04) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that nLight will post -0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at nLight

In other nLight news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 35,476 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.40, for a total value of $2,497,510.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 177,572 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,501,068.80. This trade represents a 16.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 46,735 shares of nLight stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.48, for a total transaction of $3,200,412.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,375,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $162,675,541.12. This represents a 1.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 391,038 shares of company stock worth $28,367,419. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On nLight

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LASR. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in nLight by 1,599.1% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,727 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of nLight by 7,142.9% in the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of nLight by 155.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new position in shares of nLight in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Wexford Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of nLight during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

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. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.