nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Stock Price Down 6.4% – Should You Sell?

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR)’s stock price dropped 6.4% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $65.11 and last traded at $65.1460. Approximately 159,821 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 1,471,467 shares. The stock had previously closed at $69.63.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LASR has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 target price on shares of nLight in a report on Friday, April 24th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on nLight from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on nLight in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of nLight in a research note on Friday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.06.

nLight Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.26. The company has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of -215.16 and a beta of 2.31.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.12. nLight had a negative return on equity of 4.18% and a negative net margin of 5.08%.The company had revenue of $80.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.14 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.04) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that nLight will post -0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 16,089 shares of nLight stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.60, for a total transaction of $1,200,239.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,185,039 shares in the company, valued at $163,003,909.40. The trade was a 0.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 3,817 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.90, for a total value of $278,259.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 169,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,386,803.50. This trade represents a 2.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 391,038 shares of company stock worth $28,367,419 in the last three months. 3.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On nLight

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LASR. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in nLight by 1,599.1% in the 2nd 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. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its position in nLight by 7,142.9% in the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in nLight by 155.9% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 647 shares during the period. Financial Consulate Inc. bought a new position in nLight in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of nLight during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 83.88% of the stock is currently 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.