AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) Sets New 1-Year High on Strong Earnings

Shares of AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) hit a new 52-week high on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $96.00 and last traded at $85.4140, with a volume of 5416757 shares. The stock had previously closed at $79.22.

The semiconductor company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.04) by $0.01. AXT had a negative return on equity of 9.50% and a negative net margin of 24.07%.The business had revenue of $26.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $26.22 million. AXT has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.060-0.080 EPS.

AXT News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AXT this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company issued upbeat Q2 2026 guidance (EPS $0.060–0.080 vs. consensus ~‑$0.01; revenue guidance ~$34M vs. est. ~$30.3M) — management framed capital raising as support for capacity expansion and R&D, which supports growth expectations. AXT, Inc. Announces First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results slightly beat estimates: revenue $26.9M (above estimates) and EPS loss of $0.03, a smaller loss than many expected — a modest near‑term beat that supports the guidance. AXT (AXTI) Reports Q1 Loss, Tops Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Company completed a large capital raise (~$632.5M noted in the release) earmarked for Tongmei indium phosphide capacity expansion — that provides funding for growth initiatives. AXT, Inc. Announces First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Shares had an intraday jump ahead of earnings as event-driven traders positioned around the large April equity offering and preliminary Q1 guidance — that likely amplified volatility rather than reflecting a pure fundamentals-driven move. AXT shares jump as investors position ahead of Q1 earnings after recent $550M stock offering
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst/target landscape and sizable institutional activity: some big funds added positions while others trimmed — creates divergent sentiment among investors. AXT Inc (AXTI) Stock Falls on Q1 2026 Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Planned/underwritten share offering (announced in April, ~8.56M shares at $64.25 per share in filings) raises dilution concerns — a likely key reason for share weakness despite the guidance. AXT shares jump as investors position ahead of Q1 earnings after recent $550M stock offering
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling (multiple executive sales reported) and a spike in put option activity increase bearish signals for near-term price action and investor sentiment. AXT Inc (AXTI) Stock Falls on Q1 2026 Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: While revenue grew ~39% YoY, operating loss, negative net margins and higher liabilities/capex were highlighted — the mixed quality of the quarter (profitability and cash dynamics) likely contributed to the post‑print selloff. AXT Inc (AXTI) Stock Falls on Q1 2026 Earnings

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on AXTI. Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AXT in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Needham & Company LLC lowered AXT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group set a $35.00 price objective on AXT in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Wall Street Zen raised AXT from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price objective on AXT from $8.50 to $28.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AXT presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AXT news, Director David C. Chang sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total value of $920,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 72,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,346,224. This trade represents a 21.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Morris S. Young sold 37,905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.13, for a total value of $1,938,082.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,275,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $116,337,520.64. The trade was a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 502,278 shares of company stock valued at $21,196,754. Insiders own 5.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AXT

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Destination Wealth Management acquired a new stake in AXT in the 3rd quarter worth about $458,000. Penn Capital Management Company LLC acquired a new stake in AXT in the 3rd quarter worth about $729,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in AXT by 2,404.5% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 574,828 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $9,398,000 after buying an additional 551,876 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in AXT in the 4th quarter worth about $275,000. Finally, Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its stake in AXT by 2,333,600.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 23,337 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 23,336 shares during the last quarter. 49.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AXT Trading Up 9.2%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -181.44 and a beta of 1.51.

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.