nLIGHT’s (LASR) “Speculative Buy” Rating Reiterated at Benchmark

Benchmark restated their speculative buy rating on shares of nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) in a research note released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $17.00 price objective on the stock.

Separately, Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of nLIGHT from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Friday.

nLIGHT Stock Performance

Shares of LASR traded up $0.58 on Friday, hitting $12.14. 240,222 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 179,083. nLIGHT has a 1 year low of $8.13 and a 1 year high of $15.91. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $12.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.27.

nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported ($0.26) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $51.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.08 million. nLIGHT had a negative return on equity of 17.60% and a negative net margin of 23.81%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that nLIGHT will post -0.93 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at nLIGHT

In other nLIGHT news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 14,105 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.26, for a total transaction of $172,927.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 146,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,797,328.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLIGHT

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in nLIGHT during the 3rd quarter worth $205,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its stake in shares of nLIGHT by 21.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 170,234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,770,000 after buying an additional 30,135 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of nLIGHT by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,357,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,513,000 after buying an additional 269,000 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in nLIGHT by 91.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 8,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 4,174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cable Hill Partners LLC acquired a new position in nLIGHT during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $123,000. 83.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.