Key Points
- CEO Russell Low sold 7,468 shares of Axcelis on May 6 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan at $156.75, totaling about $1.17M and trimming his stake by 5.7% to 123,570 shares (~$19.37M).
- Q1 results and guidance beat expectations: non‑GAAP EPS $0.72 vs. $0.71 and revenue $199.0M vs. $195M, and management set Q2 2026 EPS guidance around $0.90, above Street estimates.
- Market sentiment is mixed: analysts have a consensus "Hold" with an average target near $116.25 (below current levels), while institutional ownership is very high (~90%), which could constrain upside if demand softens.
Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) CEO Russell Low sold 7,468 shares of Axcelis Technologies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.75, for a total transaction of $1,170,609.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 123,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,369,597.50. This trade represents a 5.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
Russell Low also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Friday, May 1st, Russell Low sold 1,244 shares of Axcelis Technologies stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.86, for a total transaction of $172,741.84.
- On Wednesday, April 1st, Russell Low sold 1,244 shares of Axcelis Technologies stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $117,010.64.
Axcelis Technologies Stock Down 7.2%
Shares of ACLS opened at $158.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.88 billion, a PE ratio of 41.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 20.44 and a beta of 1.93. The company's fifty day moving average is $105.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.72. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $55.93 and a fifty-two week high of $171.61. The company has a quick ratio of 3.11, a current ratio of 4.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.
Axcelis Technologies (NASDAQ:ACLS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The semiconductor company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $198.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $195.03 million. Axcelis Technologies had a net margin of 14.33% and a return on equity of 13.73%. Axcelis Technologies's revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.88 EPS. Axcelis Technologies has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.900- EPS. Analysts forecast that Axcelis Technologies, Inc. will post 2.86 earnings per share for the current year.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Axcelis Technologies
A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 85.9% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,807,404 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $145,207,000 after acquiring an additional 835,242 shares during the period. Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,610,332 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $157,234,000 after acquiring an additional 91,788 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 844,097 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $78,565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,057 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Axcelis Technologies by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 635,393 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $31,560,000 after acquiring an additional 44,275 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Axcelis Technologies by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 478,897 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $38,475,000 after buying an additional 92,162 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.98% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
ACLS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Axcelis Technologies from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. B. Riley Financial raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Axcelis Technologies from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.25.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on ACLS
Axcelis Technologies News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Axcelis Technologies this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q2 guidance raised — management set Q2 2026 EPS guidance around $0.90, above the Street view (~$0.78), giving investors forward earnings upside and supporting a stronger near-term outlook. Axcelis Q1 slide deck / press release
- Positive Sentiment: Q1 results slightly beat: non-GAAP EPS $0.72 vs. consensus $0.71 and revenue $199.0M vs. $195M est; margins remain healthy (non‑GAAP gross margin ~40.7%), which validates profitability as revenue grows modestly year‑over‑year. Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) Surpasses Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
- Positive Sentiment: Conference/technical visibility — Axcelis announced presentations and sponsorship at ASMC 2026 (May 11–14), boosting investor confidence in its process leadership in ion implantation and helping explain pre-earnings positioning. Axcelis to Participate in ASMC 2026
- Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call and presentation disclose color on demand mix, margin drivers and product roadmap — useful detail for modeling but no major surprise beyond guidance. Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (ACLS) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
- Neutral Sentiment: Company slide deck / results release available for deeper review; investors can check the specifics behind GAAP vs non‑GAAP adjustments. Axcelis Announces Financial Results for First Quarter 2026
- Negative Sentiment: Insider sale — CEO Russell Low sold 7,468 shares (~$1.17M) under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan; while disclosed as pre-planned, insider sales can temper sentiment. SEC Form 4 - Russell Low sale
- Negative Sentiment: Analyst coverage and targets remain mixed/low — recent median price target cited ~$95.5, well below current levels, which could limit upside if guidance disappoints or demand softens. Axcelis (ACLS) jumps 17.4% as investors react to new conference update and position ahead of earnings
Axcelis Technologies Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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