nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $26.4167.

Several equities analysts have commented on LASR shares. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of nLight from $14.00 to $27.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of nLight in a report on Friday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on nLight from $18.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $24.00 price objective (up from $14.00) on shares of nLight in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Benchmark increased their price objective on nLight from $15.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “speculative buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th.

nLight Trading Down 3.5%

NASDAQ LASR opened at $28.80 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $22.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.85. nLight has a 12 month low of $6.20 and a 12 month high of $30.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 5.63 and a quick ratio of 4.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -30.32 and a beta of 2.44.

nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.15. nLight had a negative net margin of 21.66% and a negative return on equity of 19.12%. The business had revenue of $61.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.24 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.10) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. nLight has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that nLight will post -1.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Joseph John Corso sold 38,284 shares of nLight stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.29, for a total transaction of $1,083,054.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 273,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,726,508.22. This trade represents a 12.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott H. Keeney sold 35,730 shares of nLight stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.63, for a total value of $1,058,679.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,406,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,305,780.20. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 364,300 shares of company stock valued at $9,374,016. 6.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On nLight

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LASR. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in nLight by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 31,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 6,561 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in nLight by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 79,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $838,000 after acquiring an additional 9,251 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in nLight by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 30,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 4,540 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of nLight by 56.1% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 14,042 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 5,049 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of nLight by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 159,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,675,000 after buying an additional 15,904 shares during the period. 83.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.