Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEIS) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 460,121 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,533 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 1.22% of Advanced Energy Industries worth $53,204,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Advanced Energy Industries by 535.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 216 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 200.0% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 312 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Advanced Energy Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Energy Industries by 68.4% in the 3rd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 458 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Advanced Energy Industries in the 4th quarter worth $74,000. 99.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Energy Industries Price Performance

Shares of AEIS opened at $101.61 on Friday. Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $89.12 and a twelve month high of $132.16. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $117.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a PE ratio of 71.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 4.42, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Advanced Energy Industries (NASDAQ:AEIS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The electronics maker reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.03). Advanced Energy Industries had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 8.90%. Research analysts anticipate that Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Energy Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Advanced Energy Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 27.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AEIS. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Advanced Energy Industries from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of Advanced Energy Industries in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Advanced Energy Industries from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup upgraded Advanced Energy Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $110.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Advanced Energy Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advanced Energy Industries

In other Advanced Energy Industries news, Director Lanesha Minnix sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.37, for a total value of $206,992.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,492 shares in the company, valued at $451,760.04. This trade represents a 31.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Eduardo Bernal Acebedo sold 19,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.61, for a total transaction of $2,155,077.49. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 19,822 shares in the company, valued at $2,212,333.42. This represents a 49.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Energy Industries Company Profile

Advanced Energy Industries, Inc provides precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's plasma power products offer solutions to enable innovation for semiconductor and thin film plasma processes, such as dry etch and deposition.