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Here's Why Axcelis Technologies (ACLS) Fell More Than Broader Market

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Axcelis Technologies (ACLS - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $176.85, moving -7.7% from the previous trading session. The stock's change was less than the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.57%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 0.64%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq depreciated by 1.15%.

The semiconductor services company's shares have seen an increase of 31.02% over the last month, surpassing the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 2.85% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.14%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Axcelis Technologies in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $0.9, reflecting a 20.35% decrease from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $205.1 million, reflecting a 5.43% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.

Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $3.82 per share and revenue of $845.4 million. These totals would mark changes of -21.72% and +0.76%, respectively, from last year.

Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Axcelis Technologies. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, upbeat changes in estimates indicate analysts' favorable outlook on the business health and profitability.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), possesses a remarkable history of outdoing, externally audited, with #1 stocks returning an average annual gain of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, there's been no change in the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. Axcelis Technologies is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

With respect to valuation, Axcelis Technologies is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 50.2. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 50.27.

We can also see that ACLS currently has a PEG ratio of 11.41. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery was holding an average PEG ratio of 6.37 at yesterday's closing price.

The Electronics - Manufacturing Machinery industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 4, this industry ranks in the top 2% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.

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