Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after B. Riley Financial lowered their price target on the stock from $94.00 to $91.00. The stock had previously closed at $98.50, but opened at $79.28. B. Riley Financial currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Axcelis Technologies shares last traded at $82.0590, with a volume of 2,517,533 shares changing hands.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Axcelis Technologies from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Axcelis Technologies in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Axcelis Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Axcelis Technologies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Gerald M. Blumenstock sold 3,034 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.46, for a total transaction of $271,421.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 18,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,669,413.06. This represents a 13.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jorge Titinger sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.05, for a total transaction of $172,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,477 shares in the company, valued at $643,395.85. This trade represents a 21.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Axcelis Technologies

Here are the key news stories impacting Axcelis Technologies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat consensus — Axcelis reported Q4 revenue of $238.3M and non‑GAAP EPS that topped estimates, showing demand resilience in some end markets and better-than-expected top-line performance. Axcelis Announces Financial Results for Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call & slide deck provide management detail — Transcripts and the presentation give context on end-market timing, backlog, and margin drivers but do not change the immediate earnings/guidance story. Useful for investors who want management commentary on customers and supply chain. Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Soft Q1 2026 guidance drove the sell-off — Management set Q1 EPS at $0.71 and revenue at $195M, both below consensus (EPS ~ $0.90; revenue ~ $204M). The guide implies near-term revenue and profit cadence weakness, which is the main reason the stock fell. Slide Deck / Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst reaction: targets and ratings trimmed — B. Riley cut its price target to $91 and set a neutral rating, indicating some analyst skepticism about near-term growth despite the beat. That contributed to downward pressure. Benzinga note on B. Riley
• Negative Sentiment: Underlying profitability and cash-flow trends show strain — Some outlets highlight YoY declines in operating profit, net income and operating cash flow in Q4 (despite non‑GAAP EPS strength), raising concerns about sustainability of margins. Insider selling and institutional position changes were also noted. QuiverQuant summary
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction amplified by heavy volume — Trading volume spiked well above average, indicating broad selling pressure as investors reprice shares around the weaker near-term guidance. This dynamic magnified the move lower. AAII write-up

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Axcelis Technologies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Axcelis Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at $95,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 3,721 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 951 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 130.2% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,406 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $193,000 after purchasing an additional 1,361 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 706.8% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 38,888 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,124,000 after purchasing an additional 34,068 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Axcelis Technologies in the fourth quarter worth about $544,000. 89.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Axcelis Technologies Stock Down 16.7%

The company’s 50 day moving average is $88.32 and its 200 day moving average is $85.64. The company has a market cap of $2.52 billion, a PE ratio of 21.64 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a current ratio of 4.95, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The semiconductor company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.37. The company had revenue of $238.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $215.04 million. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 14.33% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. Axcelis Technologies has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.710-0.710 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Axcelis Technologies Company Profile

Axcelis Technologies, Inc is a leading developer and manufacturer of ion implantation and cleaning equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductor chips. The company specializes in high-current, medium-current and high-energy ion implantation systems, which are critical for introducing precisely controlled dopants into silicon wafers. Axcelis also offers plasma-based cleaning and dry strip tools that support advanced process nodes in logic, memory and power device manufacturing.

The company’s product portfolio encompasses single-wafer and multi-wafer cluster tools designed to deliver high throughput, accuracy and uniformity for semiconductor process steps.