Susquehanna Reaffirms Positive Rating for STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM)

Susquehanna reissued their positive rating on shares of STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM - Free Report) in a research note published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $55.00 target price on the semiconductor producer's stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group upgraded STMicroelectronics from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, December 15th. HSBC started coverage on STMicroelectronics in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a buy rating on the stock. StockNews.com cut STMicroelectronics from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Craig Hallum cut their price objective on STMicroelectronics from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $50.75.

STMicroelectronics Stock Up 0.7 %

STMicroelectronics stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Monday, hitting $42.25. 1,935,414 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,602,336. The business's 50 day moving average is $44.79 and its 200 day moving average is $44.78. STMicroelectronics has a 52 week low of $37.21 and a 52 week high of $55.85. The company has a market capitalization of $38.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.47, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a current ratio of 3.17, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor producer reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.19. STMicroelectronics had a return on equity of 27.70% and a net margin of 24.36%. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.32 earnings per share. STMicroelectronics's revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that STMicroelectronics will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

STMicroelectronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This is a boost from STMicroelectronics's previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 25th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. STMicroelectronics's dividend payout ratio is 4.48%.

Institutional Trading of STMicroelectronics

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its stake in STMicroelectronics by 337.8% in the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 510,834 shares of the semiconductor producer's stock worth $25,561,000 after acquiring an additional 394,147 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in STMicroelectronics in the 4th quarter worth about $6,006,000. Alamar Capital Management LLC increased its stake in STMicroelectronics by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Alamar Capital Management LLC now owns 73,966 shares of the semiconductor producer's stock worth $3,708,000 after acquiring an additional 2,409 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of STMicroelectronics by 37.8% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,131 shares of the semiconductor producer's stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 2,505 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of STMicroelectronics during the 4th quarter valued at about $361,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 5.05% of the company's stock.

STMicroelectronics Company Profile

STMicroelectronics N.V., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through Automotive and Discrete Group; Analog, MEMS and Sensors Group; and Microcontrollers and Digital ICs Group segments.