Citigroup Upgrades United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) to Buy

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Citigroup from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded United Microelectronics from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $8.90 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. HSBC raised United Microelectronics from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th.

United Microelectronics Stock Performance

NYSE:UMC traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $7.70. 13,795,802 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,910,312. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.84. United Microelectronics has a 52 week low of $6.71 and a 52 week high of $8.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.21.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.02. United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 27.41%. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.25 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Microelectronics will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of United Microelectronics

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 889,156 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $6,277,000 after purchasing an additional 125,903 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC increased its position in United Microelectronics by 46.4% in the 3rd quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 259,465 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,832,000 after acquiring an additional 82,245 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in United Microelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in United Microelectronics by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 218,484 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,542,000 after acquiring an additional 9,134 shares during the period. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in United Microelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $464,000. Institutional investors own 5.05% of the company's stock.

United Microelectronics Company Profile

United Microelectronics Corporation operates as a semiconductor wafer foundry in Taiwan, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Japan, the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides circuit design, mask tooling, wafer fabrication, and assembly and testing services. It serves fabless design companies and integrated device manufacturers.