The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Purchases 138,814 Shares of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS) by 21.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 774,586 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after buying an additional 138,814 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Advanced Energy Industries were worth $89,565,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Advanced Energy Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $68,949,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Advanced Energy Industries in the 4th quarter worth $9,864,000. Southernsun Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 240.5% in the fourth quarter. Southernsun Asset Management LLC now owns 115,668 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $13,375,000 after acquiring an additional 81,697 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $568,168,000 after acquiring an additional 69,908 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $8,002,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.67% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Energy Industries Stock Performance

Shares of AEIS opened at $97.23 on Wednesday. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.01 and a 52 week high of $132.16. The company has a quick ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 4.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market cap of $3.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.47. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $99.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $110.22.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Energy Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Saturday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Advanced Energy Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Advanced Energy Industries news, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total transaction of $206,992.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $451,760.04. This represents a 31.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Eduardo Bernal Acebedo sold 19,309 shares of Advanced Energy Industries stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 19,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,212,333.42. This represents a 49.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AEIS. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Advanced Energy Industries from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $136.00 to $124.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Advanced Energy Industries from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Advanced Energy Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $110.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Advanced Energy Industries currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.22.

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.