Needham & Company LLC Has Lowered Expectations for Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) Stock Price

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) had its target price cut by research analysts at Needham & Company LLC from $570.00 to $420.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the semiconductor company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 34.11% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Nova from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 25th. Citigroup lowered shares of Nova from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $550.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Nova in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on Nova from $600.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 target price on shares of Nova in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Nova has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $470.00.

Nova Stock Performance

Shares of NVMI traded up $32.88 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $313.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 463,560 shares, compared to its average volume of 281,614. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $346.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $437.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.85. Nova has a one year low of $266.43 and a one year high of $615.99.

Nova (NASDAQ:NVMI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The semiconductor company reported $2.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $287.84 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $282.23 million. Nova had a net margin of 28.84% and a return on equity of 21.41%. Nova’s revenue was up 28.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.16 earnings per share. Nova has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.030-3.180 EPS. Analysts expect that Nova will post 9.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nova declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, September 2nd that permits the company to repurchase $200 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Share repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Nova news, insider Shay Wolfing sold 3,864 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $363.28, for a total value of $1,403,713.92. Following the sale, the insider owned 21,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,777,461.52. The trade was a 15.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Gabriel Waisman sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.27, for a total transaction of $513,405.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 27,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,314,535.78. This represents a 5.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Nova

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aberdeen Group plc raised its holdings in shares of Nova by 1,148.9% in the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 40,090 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $15,443,000 after buying an additional 36,880 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Nova by 5,866.3% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 5,489 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,115,000 after buying an additional 5,397 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. boosted its stake in Nova by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 1,713 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $660,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. StoneX Group Inc. bought a new stake in Nova in the third quarter valued at $259,000. Finally, Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Nova by 5.0% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,885 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,578,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.99% of the company’s stock.

Nova News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Nova this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 revenue reached a record $287.8 million, up 28.2% year over year, while adjusted EPS of $2.86 topped the roughly $2.77 consensus. Nova reports record third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Nova forecast Q4 revenue of $305 million–$315 million and EPS of $3.03–$3.18, with the EPS range just above analyst expectations. Management also pointed to strong memory and packaging demand and visibility into 2027 growth. Nova Q4 outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Despite the earnings beat, one post-results report said the stock dropped, suggesting strong expectations may have limited the market’s initial response. Nova Q3 results and stock reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Barclays reduced its price target to $500 from $600, and Needham cut its target to $420 from $570. Both firms kept positive ratings—Overweight and Buy, respectively—but the lower targets could weigh on sentiment. Barclays rating

About Nova

Nova Ltd. (NASDAQ: NVMI) develops and supplies metrology and process-control solutions for the semiconductor manufacturing industry. Its systems help chipmakers measure and control critical dimensions, film thickness, material properties and other characteristics during the production of integrated circuits.

The company’s product portfolio includes optical and X-ray metrology systems, chemical metrology solutions, and related software and analytics tools. These technologies are used in multiple stages of semiconductor fabrication, including front-end wafer processing and advanced packaging, to support process development, yield improvement and manufacturing control.

Founded in 1993, Nova is headquartered in Rehovot, Israel, and serves semiconductor manufacturers and other industry customers through operations and support activities across North America, Europe and Asia.