AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $95.97, but opened at $88.70. AXT shares last traded at $90.12, with a volume of 3,163,124 shares changing hands.

AXT News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AXT this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AXT’s record InP revenue, backlog exceeding $100 million and planned capacity expansion could support a multiyear growth opportunity as AI data centers increase demand for optical components. AXT’s InP Demand Is Surging: Can It Become a Long-Term Growth Driver?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent reports linked AXT’s gains to tightening indium phosphide supply and new AI-related deals, reinforcing investor expectations that the company may benefit from increased optical-networking demand. Why AXT Is Up 11.6% After Indium Phosphide Supply Tightens Amid New AI Deals
• Neutral Sentiment: Tradr launched a first-to-market exchange-traded fund focused on AXT and several other optics and AI-related companies. The additional investment product may improve exposure and trading interest, although its direct effect on AXT’s fundamentals is unclear. Tradr Debuts First-to-Market ETFs on Meta, AXT, Coherent & Lightwave Logic
• Negative Sentiment: AXT has been pressured alongside other optics stocks as investors reassessed AI spending expectations and took profits in companies that had already posted large gains. The sector-wide risk-off move may be weighing on the stock despite its favorable InP outlook. Optics Stocks Drop on Anthropic News
• Negative Sentiment: Director Leonard J. Leblanc disclosed sales totaling 6,000 shares in August, following a 500-share sale in June. The transactions reduced his holdings by about 5.5% cumulatively and may create a modest insider-confidence overhang, although the director still owns more than 113,000 shares. SEC Insider Transaction Filing

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research raised AXT from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. B. Riley Financial lowered their target price on shares of AXT from $73.00 to $52.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of AXT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Northland Securities set a $125.00 price objective on AXT in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of AXT from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.00.

AXT Trading Down 10.8%

The company has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 3,671.50 and a beta of 1.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $68.06 and a 200-day moving average of $67.26.

AXT (NASDAQ:AXTI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.12. AXT had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 0.96%. The firm had revenue of $47.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.08 million. AXT has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.300-0.320 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AXT Inc will post 0.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jesse Chen sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.77, for a total value of $1,245,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 56,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,405,929.19. This trade represents a 18.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Morris S. Young sold 123,601 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.33, for a total transaction of $14,007,701.33. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,149,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $243,606,574.89. This trade represents a 5.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 258,136 shares of company stock valued at $28,395,372. 5.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of AXT during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of AXT in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in AXT in the second quarter worth $42,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in AXT during the 3rd quarter worth $52,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AXT during the second quarter worth about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.52% of the company’s stock.

AXT Company Profile

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.