Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) Trading Up 2.9% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares rose 2.9%, closing at $180.07 after trading as high as $186.65, with volume increasing to nearly 49 million shares.
• Recent analyst reports show diverse opinions on AMD, with price targets ranging from $140 to $200, while the consensus rating stands at "Moderate Buy".
• AMD's quarterly earnings showed a revenue increase of 31.7% year-over-year despite missing EPS estimates, while also announcing a $6 billion share repurchase plan signaling confidence in its valuation.

Shares of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD - Get Free Report) were up 2.9% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $186.65 and last traded at $180.07. Approximately 48,976,708 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 6% from the average daily volume of 46,333,102 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.95.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AMD shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Advanced Micro Devices from $100.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Advanced Micro Devices from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Advanced Micro Devices from $175.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on shares of Advanced Micro Devices from $120.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Advanced Micro Devices from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $180.12.

Advanced Micro Devices Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $148.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.36. The stock has a market cap of $294.51 billion, a PE ratio of 104.25, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.49.

Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.41 billion. Advanced Micro Devices had a return on equity of 7.54% and a net margin of 9.57%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 31.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. will post 3.87 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Micro Devices declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, May 14th that allows the company to buyback $6.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the semiconductor manufacturer to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Advanced Micro Devices news, EVP Paul Darren Grasby sold 10,000 shares of Advanced Micro Devices stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.21, for a total transaction of $1,732,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 125,505 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,738,721.05. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark D. Papermaster sold 17,998 shares of Advanced Micro Devices stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.03, for a total value of $2,790,229.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,713,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $265,676,461.30. This trade represents a 1.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.06% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advanced Micro Devices

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pinney & Scofield Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Micro Devices by 81.0% during the 2nd quarter. Pinney & Scofield Inc. now owns 190 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Greenline Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Advanced Micro Devices in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA lifted its holdings in Advanced Micro Devices by 277.8% in the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 272 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Advanced Micro Devices by 90.3% in the 1st quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 274 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in Advanced Micro Devices by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 305 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.34% of the company's stock.

About Advanced Micro Devices

Advanced Micro Devices, Inc operates as a semiconductor company worldwide. It operates through Data Center, Client, Gaming, and Embedded segments. The company offers x86 microprocessors and graphics processing units (GPUs) as an accelerated processing unit, chipsets, data center, and professional GPUs; and embedded processors, and semi-custom system-on-chip (SoC) products, microprocessor and SoC development services and technology, data processing unites, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and adaptive SoC products.