STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) Cut to Underweight at Barclays

Barclays downgraded shares of STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on STM. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on STMicroelectronics in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup raised STMicroelectronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on STMicroelectronics from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Craig Hallum cut their target price on STMicroelectronics from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, STMicroelectronics has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.11.

STMicroelectronics Price Performance

Shares of STM stock opened at $25.33 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $22.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.42, a PEG ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 1.52. The business’s fifty day moving average is $25.36 and its 200 day moving average is $28.78. STMicroelectronics has a twelve month low of $23.66 and a twelve month high of $49.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The semiconductor producer reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.27 billion. STMicroelectronics had a return on equity of 13.29% and a net margin of 16.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that STMicroelectronics will post 1.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

STMicroelectronics Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 25th. STMicroelectronics’s dividend payout ratio is 12.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On STMicroelectronics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC bought a new position in STMicroelectronics in the fourth quarter worth approximately $468,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of STMicroelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $70,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in STMicroelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $1,365,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in STMicroelectronics by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 11,159 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 1,491 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 65,561 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $1,637,000 after purchasing an additional 749 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

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.