nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Stock Has Average Target Price of $87.94 According to Brokerages

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $86.50.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LASR. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on shares of nLight from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Zacks Research cut shares of nLight from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group set a $90.00 price objective on shares of nLight in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of nLight from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.01, for a total transaction of $4,101,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,960,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,380,994.34. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO James Nias sold 1,025 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.69, for a total value of $41,707.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 96,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,930,491.24. This represents a 1.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 616,697 shares of company stock valued at $26,999,794 in the last quarter. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLight

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LASR. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of nLight by 119.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of nLight by 32,252.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. now owns 5,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 5,483 shares during the last quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in shares of nLight by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 21,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $832,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of nLight by 2,995.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 406,624 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,309,000 after purchasing an additional 393,488 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of nLight in the 2nd quarter valued at about $175,000. Institutional investors own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

nLight Stock Performance

NASDAQ LASR opened at $38.48 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -153.92 and a beta of 2.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $45.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.52. nLight has a 52 week low of $28.05 and a 52 week high of $86.95.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $82.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.58 million. nLight had a negative return on equity of 2.83% and a negative net margin of 4.02%. The business’s revenue was up 33.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.06 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that nLight will post -0.19 EPS for the current year.

About nLight

nLight, Inc is a photonics company that develops and manufactures semiconductor and fiber lasers, optical amplifiers, and related laser components and systems. Its products are designed for applications requiring high power, precision, reliability, and advanced beam control.

The company serves customers in industrial, microfabrication, aerospace and defense, and other specialized markets. Its technologies are used in areas such as materials processing, manufacturing, directed-energy systems, and other applications that rely on high-performance laser sources.

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Vancouver, Washington, nLight operates internationally, with research, development, manufacturing, and sales activities serving customers across North America, Europe, and Asia.