Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) Stock Keeps “Buy” Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $65.00 price target on the semiconductor company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 41.40% from the company’s previous close.

COHU has been the subject of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of Cohu in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cohu in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Zacks Research cut Cohu from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cohu from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 7th. Finally, Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Cohu in a research report on Friday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven 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 company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.50.

Cohu Stock Performance

Shares of COHU stock opened at $45.97 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -88.40 and a beta of 1.60. Cohu has a 1-year low of $21.10 and a 1-year high of $75.72. The company has a current ratio of 5.16, a quick ratio of 4.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.53.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.08. Cohu had a positive return on equity of 1.47% and a negative net margin of 3.97%. The firm had revenue of $172.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.06) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cohu will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Cohu

In other news, SVP Christopher Bohrson sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.82, for a total value of $558,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 159,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,914,565.64. The trade was a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Luis Muller sold 55,794 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $3,347,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 871,825 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,309,500. The trade was a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 116,692 shares of company stock worth $7,374,716. Corporate insiders own 3.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Cohu in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Cohu by 150.0% during the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in Cohu during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Cohu by 147.9% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 528 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Cohu in the second quarter valued at about $48,000. 94.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cohu

Cohu, Inc. designs and manufactures equipment and components used to test, inspect, and handle semiconductors. Its products include semiconductor test handlers, inspection systems, test contactors, and thermal subsystems that support testing at various stages of chip production. The company serves semiconductor manufacturers and outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers around the world. Its equipment is used across a range of semiconductor applications, including devices for automotive, industrial, communications, and consumer markets.