nLight price target raised to $18 from $14 at Needham

Needham analyst James Ricchiuti raised the firm’s price target on nLight (LASR) to $18 from $14 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. With reports out of Israel that lasers were used to successfully intercept drones fired by Hezbollah in October 2024 and given the plans that the White House shared earlier this month on the proposed $7.2B Golden Dome missile defense program for protecting the continental U.S., which includes $2.4B for non-kinetic missile defense capabilities, the firm continues to regard nLight as well-positioned to benefit from the investments being made in directed energy by the U.S. and its allies, the analyst tells investors in a research note.