United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Key Points

• Gap up: UMC shares jumped premarket from a $9.30 close to a $10.60 open and last traded around $10.77 on ~4.04M shares, putting the stock well above its 50- and 200-day moving averages (~$7.91 and $7.45).
• Analyst stance: The consensus rating is "Hold" (1 Strong Buy, 2 Hold, 2 Sell) after recent downgrades including Bank of America (to Underperform) and Wall Street Zen (Buy→Hold).
• Fundamentals: UMC has a $27.07B market cap and P/E of 21.13, recently reported an EPS beat of $0.20 versus $0.12 expected, and institutional ownership is low at about 5.05%.

United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $9.30, but opened at $10.60. United Microelectronics shares last traded at $10.7670, with a volume of 4,036,847 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UMC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America lowered shares of United Microelectronics from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of United Microelectronics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

United Microelectronics Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $27.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.13, a PEG ratio of 5.04 and a beta of 1.08. The stock's fifty day moving average is $7.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 2.34.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.25 billion. United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 11.18% and a net margin of 17.08%.During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.18 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that United Microelectronics Corporation will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of United Microelectronics

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in United Microelectronics by 313.7% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,265 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 3,234 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Alliance LLC acquired a new position in United Microelectronics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $77,000. MGO One Seven LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Finally, Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC bought a new position in United Microelectronics during the third quarter worth $80,000. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Microelectronics Company Profile

United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) is a Taiwan-based semiconductor foundry that provides wafer fabrication and related manufacturing services to a global customer base. Founded in 1980, the company operates as a pure-play foundry, producing integrated circuits for a range of customers including fabless semiconductor companies and integrated device manufacturers. UMC is publicly listed NYSE: UMC and focuses on high-reliability manufacturing rather than branding consumer products.

UMC's core services encompass wafer fabrication using a portfolio of process technologies, with particular emphasis on mature and specialty nodes that support analog, power-management, radio-frequency (RF), and mixed-signal applications.

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