Onto Innovation Inc. (NYSE:ONTO) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Onto Innovation Inc. (NYSE:ONTO) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,295,151 shares, a decline of 23.8% from the December 15th total of 1,698,806 shares. Currently, 2.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 605,527 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 605,527 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Currently, 2.7% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Onto Innovation

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Onto Innovation by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,667,404 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $732,342,000 after buying an additional 294,393 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Onto Innovation by 80.3% during the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,981,761 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $256,083,000 after purchasing an additional 882,901 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Onto Innovation by 1,217.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,398,995 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $180,778,000 after purchasing an additional 1,292,772 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Onto Innovation by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,114,501 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $144,016,000 after buying an additional 440,035 shares during the period. Finally, Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY boosted its position in Onto Innovation by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY now owns 1,112,839 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $112,319,000 after buying an additional 7,900 shares during the period. 98.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Onto Innovation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ONTO traded up $2.59 during trading on Friday, reaching $220.44. The stock had a trading volume of 930,891 shares, compared to its average volume of 696,634. Onto Innovation has a 1-year low of $85.88 and a 1-year high of $228.42. The stock has a market cap of $10.80 billion, a PE ratio of 62.27, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.46. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $157.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $130.41.

Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $218.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.23 million. Onto Innovation had a return on equity of 13.11% and a net margin of 17.46%.The firm’s revenue was down 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.34 earnings per share. Onto Innovation has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.180-1.330 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Onto Innovation will post 6.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Onto Innovation from $126.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Onto Innovation from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Onto Innovation from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Onto Innovation from $115.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Onto Innovation in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.25.

About Onto Innovation

Onto Innovation (NYSE:ONTO) is a global supplier of advanced process control and inspection systems for semiconductor and electronics manufacturers. The company’s solutions span metrology, inspection, defect review and lithography mask repair, helping customers optimize yield, reduce costs and improve device performance. By integrating high-resolution optical and e-beam tools with sophisticated software analytics, Onto Innovation enables wafer, mask and advanced packaging producers to maintain tight process control across leading-edge nodes and specialty applications.

Key products include high-throughput wafer metrology systems, optical and e-beam defect inspection platforms, mask inspection and repair tools, and data-driven software for yield management and process optimization.