United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate UMC “Hold” overall: Three analysts recommend selling, one recommends holding, one recommends buying and one gives a strong-buy rating. The average 12-month price target is $8.60.
• Institutional ownership remains limited but has increased among several funds: AQR Capital, Two Sigma, Rafferty Asset Management, Marshall Wace and Balyasny Asset Management all expanded or initiated positions, while institutions collectively own 5.05% of the stock.
• UMC reported solid quarterly results and raised its dividend: The company posted $0.53 in quarterly EPS on $2.16 billion in revenue, with a 33.18% net margin, and increased its annual dividend to $0.4122 from $0.37.

Shares of United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the six analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages 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 raised United Microelectronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Arete Research upgraded United Microelectronics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings raised United Microelectronics from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane restated an "underperform" rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of United Microelectronics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Microelectronics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics by 873.8% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,464,312 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $74,389,000 after acquiring an additional 8,492,466 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its position in United Microelectronics by 832.5% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 3,530,564 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $26,762,000 after purchasing an additional 3,151,936 shares during the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 50.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 8,403,064 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $64,283,000 after purchasing an additional 2,826,486 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics during the 3rd quarter valued at about $21,235,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of United Microelectronics by 2,011.2% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,980,820 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $15,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,886,996 shares during the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Microelectronics Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE UMC opened at $19.98 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $21.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.60. United Microelectronics has a 52-week low of $6.64 and a 52-week high of $28.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.17. The company has a market cap of $50.29 billion, a PE ratio of 18.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.59.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter. United Microelectronics had a net margin of 33.18% and a return on equity of 21.00%. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Microelectronics will post 1.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Microelectronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 8th were issued a $0.4122 dividend. This is an increase from United Microelectronics's previous annual dividend of $0.37. This represents a yield of 166.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 8th. United Microelectronics's dividend payout ratio is 28.97%.

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.

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