Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $229.09, but opened at $237.24. Nova shares last traded at $232.58, with a volume of 47,153 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NVMI. Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of Nova from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup raised shares of Nova from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $226.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Nova in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Nova in a report on Monday, January 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $275.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $238.33.

Nova Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a PE ratio of 42.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $205.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $204.13.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVMI. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in Nova by 131.0% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 13,540 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,821,000 after purchasing an additional 7,678 shares in the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its position in shares of Nova by 74.6% during the 3rd quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 1,281,869 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $267,487,000 after buying an additional 547,833 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its position in shares of Nova by 121.9% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 145,100 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,230,000 after buying an additional 79,700 shares in the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Nova during the third quarter valued at $15,669,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Nova in the third quarter valued at about $967,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.99% of the company’s stock.

About Nova

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.