299,102 Shares in Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT) Bought by AYAL Capital Advisors Ltd

AYAL Capital Advisors Ltd bought a new stake in Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 299,102 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,957,000. Harmonic accounts for approximately 1.0% of AYAL Capital Advisors Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Harmonic by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,788,714 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $103,045,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300,128 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL boosted its stake in shares of Harmonic by 198.2% during the 4th quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 797,176 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $10,547,000 after acquiring an additional 529,833 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Harmonic by 175.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 681,425 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $9,015,000 after acquiring an additional 434,481 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Harmonic during the 4th quarter valued at $4,292,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Harmonic by 128.3% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 441,356 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $5,839,000 after purchasing an additional 248,046 shares in the last quarter. 99.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Harmonic Trading Down 0.2 %

Harmonic stock opened at $9.00 on Friday. Harmonic Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.91 and a 1 year high of $15.46. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $9.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27 and a beta of 0.92.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.06. Harmonic had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The company had revenue of $133.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $127.51 million. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Harmonic Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Harmonic announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, February 10th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the communications equipment provider to repurchase up to 15.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Harmonic news, CFO Walter Jankovic bought 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.44 per share, with a total value of $113,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 46,129 shares in the company, valued at $435,457.76. This trade represents a 35.16 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel T. Whalen purchased 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $10.15 per share, for a total transaction of $30,450.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 8,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $89,726. This represents a 51.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 32,780 shares of company stock worth $316,607. Corporate insiders own 2.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Harmonic in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Harmonic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Harmonic in a research report on Friday, February 21st. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Harmonic in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on shares of Harmonic from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $12.33.

Harmonic Profile

Harmonic Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband solutions worldwide. The company operates through Broadband and Video segments. The Broadband segment sells broadband access solutions and related services, including cOS software-based broadband access solutions to broadband operators; and cOS central cloud services, a subscription service for cOS customers.