United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) Shares Gap Down to $8.77

United Microelectronics Co. (NYSE:UMC)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $8.77, but opened at $8.24. United Microelectronics shares last traded at $8.30, with a volume of 411,932 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on UMC shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th.

United Microelectronics Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a current ratio of 2.32. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $8.38 and its 200 day moving average is $8.12. The firm has a market cap of $20.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.86, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.18.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.01). United Microelectronics had a net margin of 24.79% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.72 billion. On average, research analysts predict that United Microelectronics Co. will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

United Microelectronics Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 2nd will be paid a $0.356 dividend. This represents a yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 2nd. United Microelectronics’s payout ratio is presently 62.86%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Microelectronics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UMC. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in United Microelectronics by 2,256.8% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 3,476,881 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $29,414,000 after purchasing an additional 3,329,354 shares during the period. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in United Microelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $5,860,000. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in United Microelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $5,671,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Microelectronics during the 4th quarter worth about $5,301,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,868,813 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $134,250,000 after buying an additional 434,018 shares during the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About United Microelectronics

United Microelectronics Corporation operates as a semiconductor wafer foundry in Taiwan, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Japan, the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides circuit design, mask tooling, wafer fabrication, and assembly and testing services. It serves fabless design companies and integrated device manufacturers.