Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $52.12, but opened at $56.49. Cohu shares last traded at $57.9290, with a volume of 101,746 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on COHU shares. B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating on shares of Cohu in a report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cohu in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Cohu from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $60.00 target price on shares of Cohu and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research raised Cohu from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.14.

Cohu Trading Up 11.5%

The company has a quick ratio of 5.31, a current ratio of 6.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -48.44 and a beta of 1.55. The business has a 50-day moving average of $55.34 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.36.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.02). Cohu had a negative net margin of 11.54% and a negative return on equity of 3.50%. The firm had revenue of $125.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $122.14 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.02) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 29.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Cohu, Inc. will post 0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cohu news, CFO Jeffrey D. Jones sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.84, for a total value of $608,920.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 343,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,103,217.28. The trade was a 3.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Steven J. Bilodeau sold 10,257 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.85, for a total transaction of $460,026.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 52,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,399.20. This represents a 16.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 90,668 shares of company stock valued at $4,248,016 in the last ninety days. 3.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cohu

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in COHU. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new stake in Cohu in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Cohu during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Cohu by 45.0% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,456 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cohu in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Gen Wealth Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of Cohu in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. 94.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cohu Company Profile

Cohu, Inc is a global provider of semiconductor test and inspection solutions, offering a broad portfolio of products designed to support chip manufacturers, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) providers, and electronics original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The company’s product lineup includes automatic test handlers, wafer probers, test sockets, thermal subassembly systems and burn-in boards, all engineered to optimize throughput, accuracy and reliability in semiconductor production and final test.

Founded in 1947 and headquartered in Poway, California, Cohu has grown through both organic development and targeted acquisitions to become a recognized leader in test handling and interconnect technologies.