Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) Shares Sold by Vestcor Inc

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc reduced its stake in Broadcom Inc. by 14.9%, selling 19,254 shares and holding a total of 109,814 shares valued at approximately $18.39 million.
• Analysts are optimistic about Broadcom's stock, with multiple firms raising their price targets significantly; JPMorgan increased theirs from $250 to $325, and the average consensus target price is now $292.08.
• Broadcom's Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program of up to $10 billion, indicating confidence in the company's valuation and financial health.

Vestcor Inc cut its position in shares of Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO - Free Report) by 14.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 109,814 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock after selling 19,254 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc's holdings in Broadcom were worth $18,386,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Independence Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Broadcom in the 1st quarter worth about $359,000. FOCUS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Broadcom by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. FOCUS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,350 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Broadcom during the 1st quarter valued at $22,432,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Broadcom by 89.8% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 95,206 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $15,940,000 after purchasing an additional 45,054 shares during the period. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Broadcom in the 1st quarter valued at $104,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.43% of the company's stock.

Broadcom Stock Performance

AVGO traded up $5.20 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $302.62. 16,562,443 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,293,160. The stock has a market cap of $1.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 113.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $264.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $223.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Broadcom Inc. has a 12 month low of $128.50 and a 12 month high of $303.26.

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 5th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.01. Broadcom had a net margin of 22.64% and a return on equity of 35.49%. The company had revenue of $15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.98 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $10.96 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Broadcom Inc. will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadcom declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, April 7th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor manufacturer to buy up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Broadcom Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 20th were paid a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 20th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. Broadcom's payout ratio is currently 88.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kirsten M. Spears sold 56,310 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $251.75, for a total transaction of $14,176,042.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 361,937 shares in the company, valued at $91,117,639.75. This represents a 13.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Hock E. Tan sold 117,758 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.91, for a total value of $29,782,175.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,014,152 shares in the company, valued at $256,489,182.32. This represents a 10.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 830,516 shares of company stock valued at $217,224,641 over the last 90 days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Broadcom from $230.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Benchmark upped their price target on Broadcom from $255.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Broadcom from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Broadcom from $223.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $304.00 price target (up from $267.00) on shares of Broadcom in a report on Friday, June 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Broadcom has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $294.92.

About Broadcom

Broadcom Inc designs, develops, and supplies various semiconductor devices with a focus on complex digital and mixed signal complementary metal oxide semiconductor based devices and analog III-V based products worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Semiconductor Solutions and Infrastructure Software.