AXT Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:AXTI)

AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors purchased 3,089 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 27% compared to the average volume of 2,427 call options.

AXT Price Performance

AXTI traded up $3.19 during trading on Thursday, reaching $25.29. 4,353,495 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,698,573. AXT has a 1 year low of $1.13 and a 1 year high of $26.66. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -48.53 and a beta of 1.94.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.12) by $0.08. AXT had a negative net margin of 25.22% and a negative return on equity of 11.19%. The firm had revenue of $27.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.85 million. Equities analysts forecast that AXT will post -0.12 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David C. Chang sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.94, for a total value of $894,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 207,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,857,231.36. The trade was a 32.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Leonard J. Leblanc sold 3,637 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.41, for a total value of $30,587.17. Following the sale, the director directly owned 118,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,738.75. The trade was a 2.97% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 326,767 shares of company stock worth $3,329,808. 8.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AXT

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AXTI. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of AXT in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in AXT in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in AXT in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $86,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of AXT by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 22,952 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 2,540 shares during the period. Finally, Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AXT by 2,333,600.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 23,337 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 23,336 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.52% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AXTI. Wedbush set a $7.00 price objective on shares of AXT and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Northland Securities set a $20.00 price target on shares of AXT in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on AXT from $5.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. B. Riley downgraded AXT from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $9.00 to $18.00 in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AXT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AXT currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.75.

About AXT

AXT, Inc (NASDAQ: AXTI) is a global supplier of compound and single-element semiconductor substrates, offering a range of materials critical for high-performance electronic and optoelectronic devices. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Fremont, California, AXT specializes in the development, manufacture and distribution of wafers composed of gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), gallium nitride (GaN) and other compound semiconductor materials. These substrates serve as the foundational platforms for devices used in data communications, wireless infrastructure, advanced computing, consumer electronics and photovoltaic applications.

AXT’s product portfolio encompasses a variety of wafer sizes, dopant concentrations and crystal orientations, tailored to meet the precise specifications of its customers.