Lazard Asset Management LLC Reduces Position in Nova Ltd. $NVMI

Lazard Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) by 38.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 42,165 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 26,697 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Nova worth $18,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Nova by 338.3% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 190,399 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $82,434,000 after purchasing an additional 146,959 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in shares of Nova by 51.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,332 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $6,224,000 after buying an additional 4,844 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Nova by 36.5% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,867 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $811,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions bought a new stake in shares of Nova in the first quarter worth $3,848,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Nova by 12.4% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,715 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $745,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.99% of the company’s stock.

Nova Price Performance

Shares of NVMI opened at $366.91 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.66 billion, a PE ratio of 45.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.74. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $496.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $477.13. Nova Ltd. has a 12-month low of $232.73 and a 12-month high of $615.99.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The semiconductor company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $235.31 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $227.02 million. Nova had a net margin of 29.21% and a return on equity of 21.77%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.18 earnings per share. Nova has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.340-2.480 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Nova Ltd. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NVMI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Nova from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Nova from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on shares of Nova from $500.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Nova from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Nova from $520.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $556.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Nova

In related news, CEO Gabriel Waisman sold 2,966 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.30, for a total transaction of $1,486,855.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 28,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,394,328.20. This represents a 9.36% decrease in their position. The sale 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. Also, Director Sarit Sagiv sold 454 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $536.52, for a total transaction of $243,580.08. Following the sale, the director owned 1,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,046,750.52. This trade represents a 18.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,798 shares of company stock valued at $4,125,266. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Nova Profile

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.