United Microelectronics Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:UMC)

Key Points

• 58,185 call options were bought on Thursday — a 1,405% increase versus the average daily volume of 3,867 calls, indicating unusually heavy bullish options activity.
• UMC shares jumped 6.8% to $10.63 on Thursday, with 5.94 million shares traded (against an average volume of 10.28 million).
• Analysts maintain a consensus rating of Strong Sell with a price target of $8.60, despite UMC slightly beating EPS estimates ($0.13 vs. $0.12) while missing revenue ($1.80B vs. $1.93B).

United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock investors bought 58,185 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 1,405% compared to the average daily volume of 3,867 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on UMC shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised United Microelectronics from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $8.60 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Strong Sell" and a consensus price target of $8.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Microelectronics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in United Microelectronics during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in United Microelectronics by 313.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,265 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3,234 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC purchased a new position in United Microelectronics during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in United Microelectronics during the 4th quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Arax Advisory Partners increased its holdings in United Microelectronics by 583.7% during the 4th quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 8,656 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 7,390 shares during the period. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Microelectronics Trading Up 6.8%

NYSE UMC traded up $0.68 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $10.63. 5,938,502 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,279,656. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.68. United Microelectronics has a 1-year low of $6.56 and a 1-year high of $12.68. The firm has a market cap of $26.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.68, a PEG ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.01. United Microelectronics had a return on equity of 11.45% and a net margin of 17.60%.The business had revenue of $1.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.10 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Microelectronics will post 0.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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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