Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) Stake Lessened by Montanaro Asset Management Ltd

Montanaro Asset Management Ltd decreased its holdings in shares of Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) by 31.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,958 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 34,400 shares during the quarter. Nova accounts for approximately 3.1% of Montanaro Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Montanaro Asset Management Ltd owned approximately 0.26% of Nova worth $14,960,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nova by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,275 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $251,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Nova by 89.7% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 165 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in Nova by 24.1% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 401 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its position in Nova by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 5,032 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $991,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Nova by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,576 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,482,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 82.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nova Trading Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ:NVMI opened at $201.04 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.89 billion, a PE ratio of 35.02, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.46. Nova Ltd. has a 1 year low of $158.00 and a 1 year high of $289.90. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $237.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $210.64.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The semiconductor company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.04). Nova had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 22.33%. The business had revenue of $194.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.50 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Nova Ltd. will post 7.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Nova in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Nova from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $226.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on shares of Nova from $315.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Nova from $245.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.83.

Nova Profile

Nova Ltd. designs, develops, produces, and sells process control systems used in the manufacture of semiconductors in Israel, Taiwan, the United States, China, Korea, and internationally. Its product portfolio includes a set of metrology platforms for dimensional, films, and materials and chemical metrology measurements for process control for various semiconductor manufacturing process steps, including lithography, etch, chemical mechanical planarization, deposition, electrochemical plating, and advanced packaging.