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Axcelis (ACLS) Surges 109% YTD: Will the Uptrend Continue?

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Axcelis Technologies (ACLS - Free Report) is witnessing strong momentum, with shares having soared 108.6% year to date compared with 35% and 17% growth of the sub-industry and S&P Composite, respectively. The company is a leading producer of ion implantation equipment used in the fabrication of semiconductors.

With healthy fundamentals and strong growth opportunities, this Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stock appears to be a solid investment option at the moment.

Catalysts Behind Price Surge

Axcelis’ performance is being driven by robust customer demand for the company’s Purion suite of products, especially in the silicon-carbide power market. In the second quarter of 2023, ACLS reported revenues of $274 million, up 23.9% year over year. 

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The transition to electric vehicles is driving the silicon-carbide power device market. This, in turn, is boosting demand for Purion products, especially PurionH200 silicon carbide, Purion XE silicon carbide systems and Purion M silicon carbide tool.

The power device market segment represented 39% of the company’s shipped systems revenues in 2022. Per a report from Fortune Business Insights, the global power electronics market is expected to be valued at $153.3 billion by 2030, registering a CAGR of 13.8% from 2023 to 2030. This augurs well for Axcelis.

Driven by solid growth of Purion Power Series product line, the company now anticipates revenues for 2023 to be greater than $1.1 billion, up nearly 20% year over year. For the third quarter, Axcelis expects revenues of $280 million.

However, ACLS’ performance is likely to be affected due to volatile supply-chain dynamics and global macroeconomic weakness. Increasing expenses toward research and development, and infrastructure are likely to be headwinds.

A Look at Estimates

ACLS’ earnings per share are indicated to increase 28% and 15% on a year-over-year basis to $6.99 and $8.04 in 2023 and 2024, respectively.  Revenues for 2023 and 2024 are projected to rise 19.7% and 11.1% to $1.1 billion and $1.22 billion, respectively.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2023 and 2024 earnings has risen 7.2% and 8%, respectively, in the past 60 days, reflecting analysts’ optimism.

Other Key Picks

Some other top-ranked stocks worth consideration in the broader technology space are Badger Meter (BMI - Free Report) , Salesforce (CRM - Free Report) and Pegasystems (PEGA - Free Report) . Badger Meter sports a Zack Rank #1 while each of Salesforce and Pegasystems carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Badger Meter’s 2023 earnings has gained 6.3% in the past 60 days to $2.86 per share. BMI’s earnings beat estimates in the last four quarters, the average surprise being 6.7%. Shares of BMI have surged 60% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Salesforce’s fiscal 2024 earnings is pegged at $7.44 per share, unchanged in the past 60 days. The long-term earnings growth rate is anticipated to be 19.3%.

CRM’s earnings surpassed estimates in the last four quarters, the average beat being 15.5%. Shares of CRM have grown 10.1% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Pegasystems’ 2023 earnings has improved 6.6% in the past 60 days to $1.46 per share. PEGA’s earnings has an average surprise of 166.2% in the trailing four quarters. Shares of PEGA have jumped 16.1% in the past year.

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