nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $55.88 and last traded at $55.1670, with a volume of 12615 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LASR. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded nLight to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded nLight from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of nLight from $33.50 to $40.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of nLight from $44.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.00.

nLight Stock Down 3.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 5.63 and a quick ratio of 4.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -60.18 and a beta of 2.33. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $41.83 and its 200-day moving average is $33.73.

Insider Transactions at nLight

In other nLight news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 66,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.32, for a total transaction of $2,399,844.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 196,224 shares in the company, valued at $7,126,855.68. This represents a 25.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 31,748 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.51, for a total value of $1,190,867.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,285,020 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,711,100.20. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 128,702 shares of company stock valued at $4,658,166. Insiders own 4.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLight

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in nLight by 1,599.1% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,727 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of nLight by 155.9% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares during the period. Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new position in shares of nLight in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Wexford Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of nLight in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of nLight by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. 83.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About nLight

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.