Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) Price Target Cut to $246.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) had its price target decreased by Morgan Stanley from $265.00 to $246.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock.

AVGO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Broadcom from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Broadcom from $205.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Broadcom from $190.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Broadcom from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Broadcom from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.04.

Broadcom Stock Performance

Shares of AVGO stock opened at $207.55 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $209.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.81. The firm has a market cap of $972.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 169.29, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.03. Broadcom has a 1 year low of $117.43 and a 1 year high of $251.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 12th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.03. Broadcom had a return on equity of 28.00% and a net margin of 11.43%. The firm had revenue of $14.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.98 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 51.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Broadcom will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadcom Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 23rd. This is a boost from Broadcom’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Broadcom’s payout ratio is currently 192.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Charlie B. Kawwas sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.98, for a total transaction of $9,279,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 696,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $161,627,425.40. This represents a 5.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Eddy W. Hartenstein sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $229.64, for a total transaction of $918,560.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 46,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,655,296. This trade represents a 7.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 191,278 shares of company stock valued at $44,964,800 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Broadcom

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Broadcom by 948.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 184,434,213 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $31,814,902,000 after buying an additional 166,844,263 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Broadcom by 976.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 99,188,826 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $17,055,760,000 after buying an additional 89,975,941 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Broadcom by 1,121.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 90,400,508 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $15,594,088,000 after buying an additional 82,998,328 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Broadcom by 842.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 35,998,595 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $6,209,758,000 after buying an additional 32,178,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Broadcom by 975.4% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 33,819,675 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $5,833,894,000 after buying an additional 30,674,902 shares in the last quarter. 76.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Broadcom

Broadcom Inc designs, develops, and supplies various semiconductor devices with a focus on complex digital and mixed signal complementary metal oxide semiconductor based devices and analog III-V based products worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Semiconductor Solutions and Infrastructure Software.