Traders Buy Large Volume of United Microelectronics Call Options (NYSE:UMC)

United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders bought 45,855 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,422% compared to the typical volume of 3,013 call options.

United Microelectronics Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UMC traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $9.71. 4,735,983 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,405,008. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $9.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.27. The stock has a market cap of $24.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.97, a PEG ratio of 5.17 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. United Microelectronics has a one year low of $5.71 and a one year high of $12.68.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.93 billion. United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 11.45% and a net margin of 17.60%.United Microelectronics’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Microelectronics will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on UMC shares. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded United Microelectronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, Bank of America cut shares of United Microelectronics from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $8.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Microelectronics

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UMC. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in United Microelectronics by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 146,966 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 11,440 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in United Microelectronics by 1,782.8% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 11,956 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 11,321 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. raised its holdings in United Microelectronics by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 53,144 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 8,371 shares during the last quarter. Summit Global Investments lifted its position in shares of United Microelectronics by 80.5% in the 4th quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 261,121 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,052,000 after purchasing an additional 116,456 shares during the period. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at $134,000. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Microelectronics Company Profile

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.