Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU) Short Interest Update

Cohu, Inc. (NASDAQ:COHU) was the target of a large increase in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,490,000 shares, an increase of 31.9% from the October 15th total of 1,130,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 318,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.7 days. Currently, 3.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on COHU. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Cohu from $36.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cohu from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Craig Hallum raised shares of Cohu from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Cohu from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Cohu from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cohu

In related news, Director Nina Richardson sold 4,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.14, for a total value of $120,675.86. Following the transaction, the director now owns 28,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,475.82. This trade represents a 15.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,599 shares of company stock worth $135,850. 2.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cohu

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in COHU. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cohu by 1,256.3% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 868 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 804 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Cohu by 558.8% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,087 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 922 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Cohu by 158.1% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,533 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 939 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Cohu in the second quarter worth about $97,000. Finally, Perkins Coie Trust Co purchased a new stake in Cohu in the second quarter worth about $132,000. 94.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cohu Trading Down 1.7 %

COHU stock traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $25.43. 293,005 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 312,311. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 4.69 and a current ratio of 6.38. Cohu has a one year low of $22.80 and a one year high of $36.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of -23.95 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $25.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.51.

Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The semiconductor company reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.15) by ($0.02). Cohu had a negative net margin of 11.35% and a negative return on equity of 1.01%. The firm had revenue of $95.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.75 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 36.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Cohu will post -0.46 EPS for the current year.

About Cohu

Cohu, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides semiconductor test equipment and services in China, the United States, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and internationally. The company supplies semiconductor test and inspection handlers, micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) test modules, test contactors, thermal sub-systems, and semiconductor automated test equipment for semiconductor manufacturers and test subcontractors.