Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on HLIT. Northland Securities decreased their price objective on Harmonic from $14.00 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Harmonic in a research note on Friday, February 21st. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on shares of Harmonic from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Harmonic from $14.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on Harmonic from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Harmonic currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.50.

Harmonic Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HLIT opened at $9.71 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.43 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 2.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $10.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.30. Harmonic has a twelve month low of $8.42 and a twelve month high of $15.46.

Harmonic (NASDAQ:HLIT) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. Harmonic had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 15.90%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Harmonic will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Harmonic announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, February 10th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the communications equipment provider to purchase up to 15.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Krall bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.78 per share, with a total value of $97,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 163,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,598,932.20. This trade represents a 6.52 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel T. Whalen bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $10.15 per share, for a total transaction of $30,450.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $89,726. This represents a 51.37 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 32,780 shares of company stock valued at $316,607 over the last ninety days. 2.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Harmonic

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Harmonic by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,036,729 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $15,105,000 after purchasing an additional 34,405 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd raised its holdings in Harmonic by 147.2% in the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 36,345 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 21,643 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Harmonic by 2,191.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 152,401 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $2,220,000 after purchasing an additional 145,751 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in Harmonic by 23.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 58,108 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $847,000 after buying an additional 11,051 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Harmonic by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 12,671 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $185,000 after buying an additional 1,647 shares in the last quarter. 99.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Harmonic Company Profile

Harmonic Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband solutions worldwide. The company operates through Broadband and Video segments. The Broadband segment sells broadband access solutions and related services, including cOS software-based broadband access solutions to broadband operators; and cOS central cloud services, a subscription service for cOS customers.