Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT) Short Interest Up 16.8% in October

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UCTT) saw a significant growth in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 998,100 shares, a growth of 16.8% from the October 15th total of 854,900 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 450,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.2 days.

Ultra Clean Stock Down 3.2 %

Shares of UCTT traded down $1.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $33.97. 398,821 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 374,144. The stock has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 424.68 and a beta of 2.08. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $36.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Ultra Clean has a twelve month low of $25.65 and a twelve month high of $56.47.

Ultra Clean (NASDAQ:UCTT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $540.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $515.88 million. Ultra Clean had a return on equity of 4.08% and a net margin of 0.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.03) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ultra Clean will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ultra Clean

In related news, COO Harjinder Bajwa acquired 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $34.83 per share, for a total transaction of $522,450.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 44,291 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,542,655.53. This represents a 51.21 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey L. Mckibben sold 3,422 shares of Ultra Clean stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.20, for a total transaction of $130,720.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,805 shares in the company, valued at approximately $718,351. This trade represents a 15.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Ultra Clean by 52.1% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Ultra Clean by 465.5% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 803 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 661 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ultra Clean during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Ultra Clean by 46.3% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 800 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ultra Clean in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. 96.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UCTT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Craig Hallum lifted their price target on Ultra Clean from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer began coverage on Ultra Clean in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Ultra Clean from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Ultra Clean from $60.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $57.75.

About Ultra Clean

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc develops and supplies critical subsystems, components and parts, and ultra-high purity cleaning and analytical services for the semiconductor industry in the United States and internationally. The company provides ultra-clean valves, high purity connectors, industrial process connectors and valves, pneumatic actuators, manifolds and safety solutions, hoses, pressure gauges, and gas line and component heaters; chemical delivery modules that deliver gases and reactive chemicals in a liquid or gaseous form from a centralized subsystem to the reaction chamber; and gas delivery systems, such as weldments, filters, mass flow controllers, regulators, pressure transducers and valves, component heaters, and an integrated electronic and/or pneumatic control system.