United Microelectronics Co. (NYSE:UMC) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

United Microelectronics Co. (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the five ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $7.40.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wedbush downgraded shares of United Microelectronics from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research report on Friday, May 23rd.

United Microelectronics Trading Up 1.2%

United Microelectronics stock traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $7.61. 6,787,727 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,668,881. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $7.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.72. United Microelectronics has a twelve month low of $5.61 and a twelve month high of $9.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.12 billion, a PE ratio of 13.12, a PEG ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 1.15.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The semiconductor company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.10 by ($0.01). United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 20.35%. The business had revenue of $1.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.13 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that United Microelectronics will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

United Microelectronics Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 24th will be issued a $0.3661 dividend. This is a boost from United Microelectronics's previous annual dividend of $0.36. This represents a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 24th. United Microelectronics's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.81%.

Institutional Trading of United Microelectronics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Microelectronics during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Microelectronics by 134.8% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,980 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,859 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Microelectronics during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Microelectronics during the fourth quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Callan Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in United Microelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at $70,000. Institutional investors own 5.05% of the company's stock.

About United Microelectronics

United Microelectronics Corporation operates as a semiconductor wafer foundry in Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, 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.