STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $50.75.

STM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered STMicroelectronics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. HSBC initiated coverage on STMicroelectronics in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Craig Hallum decreased their target price on STMicroelectronics from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research note on Monday. Finally, UBS Group upgraded STMicroelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 15th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On STMicroelectronics

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its position in STMicroelectronics by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 10,536 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $456,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in STMicroelectronics during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd grew its position in STMicroelectronics by 337.8% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 510,834 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $25,561,000 after acquiring an additional 394,147 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in STMicroelectronics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,006,000. Finally, Alamar Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Alamar Capital Management LLC now owns 73,966 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $3,708,000 after buying an additional 2,409 shares during the period. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

STMicroelectronics Stock Performance

Shares of STM opened at $42.67 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $44.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a current ratio of 3.17. STMicroelectronics has a 52-week low of $37.21 and a 52-week high of $55.85.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The semiconductor producer reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. STMicroelectronics had a return on equity of 27.70% and a net margin of 24.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.32 EPS. Research analysts forecast that STMicroelectronics will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STMicroelectronics Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 25th will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. This is a positive change from STMicroelectronics’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 25th. STMicroelectronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.48%.

STMicroelectronics Company Profile

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.