Edgestream Partners L.P. Takes Position in Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT)

Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in Harmonic Inc. (NASDAQ:HLIT) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 55,678 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $737,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HLIT. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Harmonic in the third quarter valued at $833,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Harmonic during the third quarter worth about $842,000. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in Harmonic during the third quarter worth about $227,000. Bouvel Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in Harmonic during the third quarter worth about $1,756,000. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its position in Harmonic by 12.6% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,019,638 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $14,856,000 after buying an additional 113,929 shares in the last quarter. 99.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Harmonic Price Performance

HLIT opened at $10.37 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $11.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.66. Harmonic Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.42 and a 12-month high of $15.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.43 and a beta of 0.87.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.01. Harmonic had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 5.78%. Equities analysts predict that Harmonic Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Harmonic declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, February 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the communications equipment provider to purchase up to 15.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Walter Jankovic purchased 12,000 shares of Harmonic stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $9.44 per share, for a total transaction of $113,280.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,129 shares in the company, valued at $435,457.76. The trade was a 35.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel T. Whalen purchased 3,000 shares of Harmonic stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $10.15 per share, for a total transaction of $30,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,840 shares in the company, valued at $89,726. The trade was a 51.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 32,780 shares of company stock worth $316,607 in the last ninety days. 2.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HLIT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Harmonic from $14.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their target price on Harmonic from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. StockNews.com cut Harmonic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Northland Securities reduced their target price on Harmonic from $14.00 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Harmonic in a research report on Friday, February 21st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $12.50.

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.