United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) Shares Gap Down - What's Next?

United Microelectronics Co. (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $7.84, but opened at $7.65. United Microelectronics shares last traded at $7.57, with a volume of 588,365 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "sell" rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup raised United Microelectronics from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Wedbush downgraded shares of United Microelectronics from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.40.

United Microelectronics Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company's 50 day moving average price is $7.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.73. The company has a market cap of $19.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12, a PEG ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 1.15.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The semiconductor company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.01). United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 20.35%. The firm had revenue of $1.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $57.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.13 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that United Microelectronics Co. will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

United Microelectronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 24th will be given a $0.3661 dividend. This is an increase from United Microelectronics's previous annual dividend of $0.36. This represents a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 24th. United Microelectronics's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.81%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in United Microelectronics by 3,091.8% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 14,329,393 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $92,998,000 after buying an additional 13,880,446 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 238.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,184,444 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $20,667,000 after acquiring an additional 2,244,574 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in United Microelectronics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,768,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in United Microelectronics by 150.8% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,021,849 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $13,122,000 after acquiring an additional 1,215,849 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. grew its stake in United Microelectronics by 360.1% in the first quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 1,536,660 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $10,987,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202,660 shares in the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Microelectronics Company Profile

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.