STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) Cut to “Market Perform” at Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has $26.00 price target on the semiconductor producer’s stock, down from their previous price target of $33.00.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays downgraded shares of STMicroelectronics from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of STMicroelectronics from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of STMicroelectronics from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, STMicroelectronics presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.26.

STMicroelectronics Stock Performance

Shares of STM stock opened at $22.46 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $20.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.51. STMicroelectronics has a 52 week low of $21.36 and a 52 week high of $49.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.37, a current ratio of 3.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.96 and a 200-day moving average of $27.48.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor producer reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.02. STMicroelectronics had a net margin of 11.74% and a return on equity of 8.92%. On average, equities analysts forecast that STMicroelectronics will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current year.

STMicroelectronics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. STMicroelectronics’s payout ratio is 18.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On STMicroelectronics

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 68,885 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $2,048,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 81.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,183 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 531 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 12,280 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 68,573 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $2,039,000 after acquiring an additional 634 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 10,278 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.