Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 359,547 Shares of Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI)

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its position in Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI - Free Report) by 10.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,025,760 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 359,547 shares during the quarter. Analog Devices comprises approximately 0.9% of Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.61% of Analog Devices worth $642,852,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ADI. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Analog Devices during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Analog Devices in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Analog Devices by 63.2% during the 4th quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 142 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Analog Devices during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Analog Devices in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 86.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Ray Stata sold 3,125 shares of Analog Devices stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.21, for a total value of $563,156.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 186,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,576,907.41. The trade was a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Vincent Roche sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.12, for a total transaction of $2,091,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 64,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,575,652.16. This represents a 13.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 42,934 shares of company stock worth $8,735,156. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ADI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Analog Devices in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Lake Street Capital began coverage on shares of Analog Devices in a research report on Friday, February 14th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Maxim Group assumed coverage on shares of Analog Devices in a research report on Friday, February 14th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Analog Devices from $275.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Analog Devices from $240.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $250.20.

Analog Devices Stock Performance

Analog Devices stock traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $227.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,044,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,509,991. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $196.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $210.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.93. Analog Devices, Inc. has a 12-month low of $158.65 and a 12-month high of $247.10. The company has a market capitalization of $112.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 72.33, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.98.

Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. Analog Devices had a net margin of 16.75% and a return on equity of 8.91%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.73 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Analog Devices, Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analog Devices declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to buy up to 9.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analog Devices Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This is a positive change from Analog Devices's previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. Analog Devices's payout ratio is presently 126.11%.

Analog Devices Company Profile

Analog Devices, Inc designs, manufactures, tests, and markets integrated circuits (ICs), software, and subsystems products in the United States, rest of North and South America, Europe, Japan, China, and rest of Asia. The company provides data converter products, which translate real-world analog signals into digital data, as well as translates digital data into analog signals; power management and reference products for power conversion, driver monitoring, sequencing, and energy management applications in the automotive, communications, industrial, and consumer markets; and power ICs that include performance, integration, and software design simulation tools for accurate power supply designs.