Coherent stock slips into earnings week as Morgan Stanley lifts target on COHR

Coherent stock slips into earnings week as Morgan Stanley lifts target on COHR

New York, January 31, 2026, 19:16 EST — The market has closed.

  • Coherent shares ended Friday down 1.7% at $212.18, holding steady in after-hours trading.
  • Morgan Stanley bumped its price target to $190 but held onto an equal-weight rating ahead of the earnings report.
  • Investors are turning to earnings reports from major optical-component makers, due Feb. 3–4, for clues on datacenter demand.

Coherent shares ended Friday down 1.7%, closing at $212.18. In after-hours trading, the stock slipped slightly further to $211.84, a 0.2% drop.

Why it matters now: Coherent will release its earnings Wednesday, Feb. 4, once the New York Stock Exchange closes. The company plans to host a webcast at 4:30 p.m. ET, it said.

The photonics supplier — which uses light to transmit data or power devices — serves datacenter, communications, and industrial sectors. Its quarterly guidance and outlook often trigger sharp moves in the stock, particularly during volatile trading sessions.

Friday’s session made that clear. The stock kicked off at $221.57, swinging between $210.48 and $237.18 before slipping back by the close. Despite the volatility, it’s still roughly 7% higher over the past week, judging by recent closing prices.

Meta Marshall bumped Coherent’s price target to $190 from $180, maintaining an Equal Weight rating. She said she’s “more positively inclined on COHR vs. LITE into the print,” drawing a comparison with Lumentum Holdings. TipRanks

Despite the recent boost, Morgan Stanley’s target remains roughly 12% under Friday’s closing price. When the bank says Equal Weight, it means the shares should track their sector peers, not outpace them.

Lumentum is set to report its fiscal second-quarter results Tuesday, Feb. 3, after the market closes, the company announced earlier this month.

Coherent’s market focus will be on demand cues for high-speed optical equipment in datacenters and carrier networks, plus any shifts in pricing or supply affecting margins. Investors will zero in on management’s outlook for the upcoming quarter, paying close attention to whether orders appear solid or just well-timed.

But the setup works both ways. Any cautious tone or signs of slowing spending on networking upgrades can quickly hit high-multiple hardware stocks, and Coherent has experienced sharp intraday swings as a result.

Markets reopen Monday, Feb. 2. Coherent’s next big event: earnings on Feb. 4 after the close. Investors will be eyeing Tuesday’s Lumentum results for clues on the sector.

Khadija Saeed

Khadija Saeed is a financial markets reporter at TS2.tech. Her coverage ranges from stocks and technology to emerging industries and developments across global markets. She studied economics and finance at the London School of Economics and worked in market research before becoming a financial journalist. Follow Khadija Saeed on Google News.

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