nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) Shares Gap Up to $10.51

nLIGHT, Inc. (NASDAQ:LASR)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $10.51, but opened at $10.74. nLIGHT shares last traded at $10.73, with a volume of 24,773 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on nLIGHT in a research report on Thursday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $15.50 price objective for the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of nLIGHT in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “speculative buy” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of nLIGHT in a research report on Friday, August 2nd.

nLIGHT Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $528.92 million, a PE ratio of -10.85 and a beta of 2.36. The company has a fifty day moving average of $11.12 and a 200-day moving average of $11.79.

nLIGHT (NASDAQ:LASR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $50.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.23 million. nLIGHT had a negative return on equity of 19.58% and a negative net margin of 25.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.18) EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that nLIGHT, Inc. will post -0.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at nLIGHT

In other news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 4,461 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.44, for a total transaction of $51,033.84. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 171,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,961,204.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of nLIGHT

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of nLIGHT by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 11,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $150,000 after acquiring an additional 1,503 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in nLIGHT by 16.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,000 after purchasing an additional 1,886 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its position in shares of nLIGHT by 9.6% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 13,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,220 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of nLIGHT in the second quarter worth $197,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of nLIGHT by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 18,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 1,546 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

nLIGHT Company Profile

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.