Shares of semiconductor equipment maker Axcelis Technologies (ACLS +2.74%) rallied 26.4% in June, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
While there were no financial releases from the company during the month, there were some potential green shoots regarding important end markets for Axcelis' customers, such as electric vehicles (EVs) and industrial chips. Additionally, the company announced a three-hour investor event for July that may have gotten investors excited.
NASDAQ: ACLS
Key Data Points
Could the electric vehicle market be on the brink of a turnaround?
Axcelis is a leader in ion implant equipment, in which a molecule is implanted into a silicon wafer in order to make chips with higher conductivity. The vast majority of Axcelis' equipment is used in trailing-edge nodes, including the growing silicon carbide market targeting EVs and industrial applications.
Those end markets have been in a severe downturn for the better part of a year now, which is why Axcelis' stock fell from over $200 per share exactly one year ago to under $100 in April.
As skepticism around electric vehicle adoption has mounted, some commentary from leading automaker CEOs in early June helped lend some optimism. While sales of industry leader Tesla (TSLA +0.34%) have struggled, at an early-June auto industry conference, General Motors (GM +1.15%) CEO Mary Barra noted that GM had just recorded its best month of all-electric vehicles in May, with Ford (F +0.94%) management also noting strong all-electric vehicle sales in the first half of the year.
Additionally, EV sales are down in part because of higher interest rates and inflation, which cuts into customer spending power for higher-priced EVs. But May's consumer price index (CPI) report came in softer-than-expected in mid-June, boosting hopes for eventual interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and therefore lower rates for car loans.
July could be bring more optimism, or disappointment
Finally, Axcelis also announced an Investor Day event set for July 11. The three-hour presentation will offer an in-depth view of the business and Axcelis' growth opportunity, according to the press release. This may have excited investors, as management probably wouldn't hold such an event if it didn't have good things to say.
Interested investors should tune into that event, as Axcelis still remains about 30% below its all-time highs.
