Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $206.80, but opened at $218.89. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing shares last traded at $216.13, with a volume of 12,944,739 shares changing hands.

The semiconductor company reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.08. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing had a net margin of 39.10% and a return on equity of 27.44%.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.5484 dividend. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 17th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in TSM. FMR LLC grew its position in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 7.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 55,974,769 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $9,721,138,000 after acquiring an additional 3,783,802 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 669.7% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,721,489 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $646,832,000 after buying an additional 3,237,998 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 1,226.7% during the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,983,830 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $344,809,000 after buying an additional 1,834,298 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 799.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,899,088 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $329,815,000 after buying an additional 1,687,886 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 3rd quarter worth about $229,098,000. Institutional investors own 16.51% of the company’s stock.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $197.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $183.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $1.12 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.07.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Profile

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, packages, tests, and sells integrated circuits and other semiconductor devices in Taiwan, China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, the United States, and internationally. It provides a range of wafer fabrication processes, including processes to manufacture complementary metal- oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) logic, mixed-signal, radio frequency, embedded memory, bipolar CMOS mixed-signal, and others.