STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) Shares Up 5.9% – Here’s Why

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) was up 5.9% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $28.06 and last traded at $28.04. Approximately 12,665,903 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 80% from the average daily volume of 7,024,324 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.47.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on STM shares. Craig Hallum cut their price objective on shares of STMicroelectronics from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of STMicroelectronics from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of STMicroelectronics from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of STMicroelectronics from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of STMicroelectronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.26.

STMicroelectronics Trading Up 6.0 %

The firm has a market cap of $25.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.51. The business’s 50-day moving average is $24.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 3.11 and a quick ratio of 2.37.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor producer reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.02. STMicroelectronics had a net margin of 11.74% and a return on equity of 8.92%. As a group, analysts predict that STMicroelectronics will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STMicroelectronics Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. STMicroelectronics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.67%.

Institutional Trading of STMicroelectronics

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in STMicroelectronics by 26.5% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 8,195,521 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $228,655,000 after purchasing an additional 1,719,257 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 4,475,384 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $111,750,000 after buying an additional 725,684 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 131.5% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,413,356 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $85,232,000 after buying an additional 1,939,088 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 3,330,616 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $83,165,000 after buying an additional 938,097 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 576.2% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,920,774 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $47,962,000 after buying an additional 1,636,707 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

About STMicroelectronics

STMicroelectronics N.V., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through Automotive and Discrete Group; Analog, MEMS and Sensors Group; and Microcontrollers and Digital ICs Group segments.