Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eighteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $255.41.

ADI has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Analog Devices from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Maxim Group initiated coverage on shares of Analog Devices in a report on Friday, February 14th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of Analog Devices from $245.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Analog Devices in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Analog Devices from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th.

Insider Transactions at Analog Devices

In other Analog Devices news, CEO Vincent Roche sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.49, for a total transaction of $2,154,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 21,983 shares in the company, valued at $4,737,116.67. This represents a 31.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Analog Devices

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ADI. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Analog Devices in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Analog Devices in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Analog Devices during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Analog Devices during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Analog Devices in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.81% of the company’s stock.

Analog Devices Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ADI opened at $228.53 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $217.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.14. The company has a market cap of $113.35 billion, a PE ratio of 72.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.04. Analog Devices has a twelve month low of $182.57 and a twelve month high of $247.10.

Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.09. Analog Devices had a return on equity of 8.91% and a net margin of 16.75%. The company had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.73 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Analog Devices will post 7.14 EPS for the current year.

Analog Devices announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 9.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analog Devices Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.99 dividend. This is a positive change from Analog Devices’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. Analog Devices’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 126.11%.

About Analog Devices

Analog Devices, Inc designs, manufactures, tests, and markets integrated circuits (ICs), software, and subsystems products in the United States, rest of North and South America, Europe, Japan, China, and rest of Asia. The company provides data converter products, which translate real-world analog signals into digital data, as well as translates digital data into analog signals; power management and reference products for power conversion, driver monitoring, sequencing, and energy management applications in the automotive, communications, industrial, and consumer markets; and power ICs that include performance, integration, and software design simulation tools for accurate power supply designs.