STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) Short Interest Update

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,320,000 shares, a drop of 27.2% from the November 30th total of 10,050,000 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

STM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of STMicroelectronics in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of STMicroelectronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Citigroup upgraded shares of STMicroelectronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Craig Hallum dropped their price objective on shares of STMicroelectronics from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.26.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On STMicroelectronics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STM. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in STMicroelectronics by 49.4% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,908 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 1,293 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of STMicroelectronics by 144.2% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,243 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 734 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in STMicroelectronics by 11.6% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,476,264 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $254,388,000 after buying an additional 675,353 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of STMicroelectronics by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 19,718 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $775,000 after acquiring an additional 1,275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Naviter Wealth LLC boosted its position in STMicroelectronics by 37.7% during the second quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC now owns 11,112 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 3,045 shares in the last quarter. 5.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

STMicroelectronics Stock Performance

NYSE STM traded down $0.05 during trading on Friday, reaching $25.48. 3,678,163 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,155,539. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.49, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.53. STMicroelectronics has a fifty-two week low of $23.95 and a fifty-two week high of $50.70.

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

STMicroelectronics Announces Dividend

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 issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. STMicroelectronics’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.81%.

About STMicroelectronics

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.