nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – What’s Next?

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 1,089,324 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 26% from the previous session’s volume of 864,313 shares.The stock last traded at $45.68 and had previously closed at $49.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LASR shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of nLight in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded nLight from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on nLight from $44.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of nLight from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of nLight from $33.50 to $40.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.00.

nLight Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 5.63, a quick ratio of 4.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market capitalization of $2.11 billion, a PE ratio of -47.52 and a beta of 2.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $39.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.51.

Insider Activity at nLight

In other nLight news, CAO James Nias sold 1,200 shares of nLight stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $36,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 99,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,985,360. The trade was a 1.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 66,075 shares of nLight stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.32, for a total value of $2,399,844.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 196,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,126,855.68. The trade was a 25.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 141,262 shares of company stock worth $5,101,910. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On nLight

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LASR. Bailard Inc. bought a new position in nLight in the fourth quarter worth about $266,000. Wesbanco Bank Inc. purchased a new position in shares of nLight in the 4th quarter worth approximately $375,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of nLight by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA purchased a new stake in nLight during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $335,000. Finally, Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in nLight in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $229,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.88% of the company’s stock.

About nLight

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. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications.