CenterBook Partners LP Takes Position in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

CenterBook Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 8,512 shares of the electronics maker’s stock, valued at approximately $984,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Advanced Energy Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $68,949,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,864,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Advanced Energy Industries by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,913,669 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $568,168,000 after buying an additional 69,908 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in Advanced Energy Industries during the 4th quarter worth $8,002,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 483,848 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $50,920,000 after acquiring an additional 53,566 shares in the last quarter. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Performance

NASDAQ AEIS opened at $86.77 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $106.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.37. The stock has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 60.68, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a current ratio of 4.42. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.01 and a fifty-two week high of $132.16.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.03). Advanced Energy Industries had a return on equity of 8.90% and a net margin of 3.66%. On average, equities analysts expect that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Energy Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Advanced Energy Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Eduardo Bernal Acebedo sold 19,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.61, for a total transaction of $2,155,077.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 19,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,212,333.42. This trade represents a 49.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of Advanced Energy Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total value of $206,992.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,492 shares in the company, valued at $451,760.04. The trade was a 31.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Advanced Energy Industries from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $110.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Energy Industries has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.56.

Advanced Energy Industries Company Profile

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.