Brokerages Set Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) Price Target at $348.57

Shares of Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ:NVMI) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $348.5714.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nova in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Evercore increased their target price on Nova from $290.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Benchmark lifted their price target on Nova from $280.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Nova from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Nova in a report on Monday, December 1st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $335.00 price objective for the company.

Institutional Trading of Nova

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NVMI. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Nova by 4.9% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,200,948 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $605,701,000 after purchasing an additional 102,250 shares during the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd lifted its position in Nova by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 1,549,154 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $428,980,000 after buying an additional 58,600 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. lifted its position in Nova by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 1,493,657 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $490,502,000 after buying an additional 98,000 shares in the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Nova by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,468,863 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $482,360,000 after buying an additional 40,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nova by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,128,957 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $377,402,000 after acquiring an additional 15,195 shares in the last quarter. 82.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nova Stock Up 7.7%

NVMI opened at $459.48 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $381.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $325.28. Nova has a fifty-two week low of $153.99 and a fifty-two week high of $507.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 4.58 and a quick ratio of 4.00. The company has a market capitalization of $13.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.84.

About Nova

Nova Measuring Instruments Ltd (NASDAQ: NVMI) develops and supplies advanced metrology and process control systems for the semiconductor manufacturing industry. The company’s core product line includes spectroscopic ellipsometry and scatterometry tools designed to measure film thickness, critical dimensions, overlay alignment and other key parameters that drive yield and performance in integrated circuit fabrication.

Founded in 1993 and headquartered in Rehovot, Israel, Nova Measuring Instruments has established itself as a critical partner to leading semiconductor foundries and device manufacturers.