Principal Financial Group Inc. Raises Position in Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 232,111 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,080 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.50% of Cohu worth $3,414,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Azarias Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Cohu during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,021,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cohu by 6.0% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 25,642 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 1,454 shares during the period. Palouse Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Cohu by 105.5% in the first quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,918 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 2,525 shares in the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Cohu in the first quarter valued at $527,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Cohu by 19.5% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 17,800 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.67% of the company’s stock.

Cohu Price Performance

COHU stock opened at $20.03 on Friday. Cohu, Inc. has a 52-week low of $12.57 and a 52-week high of $34.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $931.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.83 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 3.69 and a current ratio of 5.20.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The semiconductor company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.16) by $0.14. The company had revenue of $96.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $96.61 million. Cohu had a negative net margin of 21.99% and a negative return on equity of 3.76%. Cohu’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.01 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Cohu, Inc. will post -0.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Cohu from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Cohu in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Cohu from $27.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Cohu from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.17.

About Cohu

Cohu, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides semiconductor test equipment and services in China, the United States, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and internationally. The company supplies semiconductor test and inspection handlers, micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) test modules, test contactors, thermal sub-systems, and semiconductor automated test equipment for semiconductor manufacturers and test subcontractors.