Brokerages Set United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC) Target Price at $8.60

United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC) has been given an average rating of “Strong Sell” by the four brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and one has issued a hold rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $8.60.

UMC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut United Microelectronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a report on Thursday, May 28th.

United Microelectronics Stock Performance

Shares of UMC stock opened at $21.23 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $53.46 billion, a PE ratio of 32.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $22.28 and a 200-day moving average of $14.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.23. United Microelectronics has a one year low of $6.56 and a one year high of $28.96.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.08. United Microelectronics had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 13.67%. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.92 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Microelectronics will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current year.

United Microelectronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.4122 per share. This is an increase from United Microelectronics’s previous annual dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a yield of 166.0%. United Microelectronics’s dividend payout ratio is 47.69%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in United Microelectronics by 3,854.2% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 168,648 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,326,000 after purchasing an additional 164,383 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 792,367 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,228,000 after purchasing an additional 95,871 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 495,589 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,895,000 after purchasing an additional 70,597 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics by 115.3% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 86,927 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $781,000 after purchasing an additional 46,549 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Microelectronics during the first quarter worth about $8,779,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

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.