United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

United Microelectronics Corporation (NYSE:UMC) shares gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $12.64, but opened at $12.18. United Microelectronics shares last traded at $12.3450, with a volume of 2,133,654 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UMC. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $8.60 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of United Microelectronics in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and an average target price of $8.60.

United Microelectronics Stock Down 2.9%

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $9.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $30.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 1.16.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.01. United Microelectronics had a net margin of 17.60% and a return on equity of 11.45%. The business had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. United Microelectronics’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that United Microelectronics Corporation will post 0.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Microelectronics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Summit Global Investments purchased a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,097,000. North of South Capital LLP purchased a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $948,000. Moran Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 792,367 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,228,000 after purchasing an additional 95,871 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 102.7% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 541,044 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,101,000 after purchasing an additional 274,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its stake in shares of United Microelectronics by 2,855.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 235,604 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,786,000 after purchasing an additional 227,633 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

About United Microelectronics

United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) is a Taiwan-based semiconductor foundry that provides wafer fabrication and related manufacturing services to a global customer base. Founded in 1980, the company operates as a pure-play foundry, producing integrated circuits for a range of customers including fabless semiconductor companies and integrated device manufacturers. UMC is publicly listed (NYSE: UMC) and focuses on high-reliability manufacturing rather than branding consumer products.

UMC’s core services encompass wafer fabrication using a portfolio of process technologies, with particular emphasis on mature and specialty nodes that support analog, power-management, radio-frequency (RF), and mixed-signal applications.