United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $11.20 and last traded at $11.1450, with a volume of 19419340 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on UMC shares. Bank of America downgraded United Microelectronics from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded United Microelectronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

United Microelectronics Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 2.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.49. The firm has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.85, a P/E/G ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 1.08.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.25 billion. United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 11.18% and a net margin of 17.08%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.18 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that United Microelectronics Corporation will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Microelectronics

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UMC. Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 19,110 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,445 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in United Microelectronics by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 15,710 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 1,459 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in United Microelectronics by 11.5% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 14,756 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 1,516 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in United Microelectronics by 8.9% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 19,307 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $146,000 after buying an additional 1,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its position in United Microelectronics by 9.3% during the second quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 19,614 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $150,000 after acquiring an additional 1,663 shares during the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About United Microelectronics

United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) is a Taiwan-based semiconductor foundry that provides wafer fabrication and related manufacturing services to a global customer base. Founded in 1980, the company operates as a pure-play foundry, producing integrated circuits for a range of customers including fabless semiconductor companies and integrated device manufacturers. UMC is publicly listed (NYSE: UMC) and focuses on high-reliability manufacturing rather than branding consumer products.

UMC’s core services encompass wafer fabrication using a portfolio of process technologies, with particular emphasis on mature and specialty nodes that support analog, power-management, radio-frequency (RF), and mixed-signal applications.