AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) Short Interest Up 36.4% in February

AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 6,081,351 shares, a growth of 36.4% from the January 29th total of 4,457,894 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 7,472,699 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days. Currently, 12.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Currently, 12.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 7,472,699 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC downgraded AXT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group set a $35.00 price target on AXT in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AXT in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Northland Securities set a $20.00 price objective on AXT in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, B. Riley Financial upped their target price on AXT to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.80.

Insider Activity

In other AXT news, CEO Morris S. Young sold 159,536 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.32, for a total value of $6,911,099.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,482,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $107,521,886.16. This represents a 6.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jesse Chen sold 11,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.59, for a total transaction of $516,078.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 198,018 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,027,640.62. The trade was a 5.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 241,863 shares of company stock valued at $8,665,602 over the last quarter. 8.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AXT

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AXTI. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in AXT by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 22,952 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 2,540 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AXT by 30.1% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 14,967 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 3,467 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of AXT during the fourth quarter valued at about $69,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of AXT during the fourth quarter worth about $98,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC raised its holdings in shares of AXT by 31.9% in the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 28,800 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 6,970 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 49.52% of the company’s stock.

AXT Trading Down 9.8%

AXTI stock opened at $41.76 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of -87.00 and a beta of 1.75. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $23.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.83. AXT has a 1-year low of $1.13 and a 1-year high of $47.03.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $23.04 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.24 million. AXT had a negative net margin of 24.07% and a negative return on equity of 10.59%. On average, analysts forecast that AXT will post -0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

AXT News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AXT this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Large institutional buyers accumulated big stakes in Q4 2025 (Davidson Kempner, Hood River, Point72 and others), which provides underlying demand and long‑term support for the stock. Quiver Quantitative
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical momentum has been very strong (AXT has surged ~2,386% over the past year and reached recent all‑time highs), but Barchart and other commentary note decelerating price appreciation—a mixed signal for short‑term direction. Barchart Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest figures in the recent feeds are inconsistent/zero (displaying NaN/0), so short‑interest signals are unclear from the available data; this reduces confidence in short‑squeeze narratives today.
• Negative Sentiment: Director Jesse Chen sold 11,320 shares on Mar 2 at an average ~$45.59 (~$516k) and sold 11,007 shares on Mar 3 at an average ~$40.49 (~$446k). These block insider sales (a ~5.4–5.6% reduction in his holdings each time) are pressuring sentiment and likely driving some of the intraday selling. SEC filing: SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Aggregate insider activity shows heavy net selling (Quiver reports 16 insider sales and 0 purchases in the last 6 months), which is a negative governance/sentiment signal for some traders. Quiver Quantitative

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.