Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 333,011 Shares of United Microelectronics Corporation $UMC

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors increased its UMC stake by 13.2% in the first quarter, buying 333,011 shares to own 2.85 million shares valued at approximately $25.6 million. Hedge funds and institutional investors collectively own 5.05% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but leans negative: UMC has an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus price target of $8.60, despite recent upgrades from Wall Street Zen and Zacks Research.
• UMC reported quarterly revenue of $2.16 billion and earnings of $0.53 per share, while announcing an increased annual dividend of $0.4122 per share. Shares opened at $19.34, down 6.3%, with a market capitalization of about $48.7 billion.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC - Free Report) by 13.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,849,737 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 333,011 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.11% of United Microelectronics worth $25,591,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UMC. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of United Microelectronics by 3,854.2% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 168,648 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,326,000 after acquiring an additional 164,383 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in United Microelectronics by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 792,367 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $6,228,000 after purchasing an additional 95,871 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in United Microelectronics by 115.3% during 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. Ethic Inc. lifted its position in United Microelectronics by 16.6% during 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. Finally, Matthews International Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in United Microelectronics during the first quarter valued at about $8,779,000. 5.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on UMC shares. BNP Paribas Exane reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Microelectronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $8.60.

United Microelectronics Stock Down 6.3%

Shares of UMC opened at $19.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.60. United Microelectronics Corporation has a 1 year low of $6.56 and a 1 year high of $28.96. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $22.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 2.17 and a quick ratio of 1.81.

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

United Microelectronics Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.4122 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a dividend yield of 166.0%. This is a positive change from United Microelectronics's previous annual dividend of $0.37. United Microelectronics's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.97%.

United Microelectronics 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.

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