United Microelectronics Co. (NYSE:UMC) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

United Microelectronics Co. (NYSE:UMC) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 43,750,000 shares, a decline of 19.1% from the July 15th total of 54,110,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 11,040,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.0 days.

Institutional Trading of United Microelectronics

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Microelectronics during the first quarter valued at about $86,000. Aprio Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Microelectronics in the second quarter valued at about $95,000. Adero Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of United Microelectronics in the fourth quarter worth about $94,000. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Microelectronics during the fourth quarter worth about $95,000. Institutional investors own 5.05% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UMC shares. StockNews.com raised United Microelectronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded United Microelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of United Microelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th.

United Microelectronics Stock Performance

UMC traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $8.77. 18,627,652 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,413,355. United Microelectronics has a 52-week low of $6.71 and a 52-week high of $9.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.46, a P/E/G ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $8.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.13.

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The semiconductor company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.03. United Microelectronics had a net margin of 23.90% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.20 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that United Microelectronics will post 0.64 EPS for the current year.

United Microelectronics Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 2nd were given a dividend of $0.356 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 2nd. This represents a yield of 4.07%. United Microelectronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

About United Microelectronics

United Microelectronics Corporation operates as a semiconductor wafer foundry in Taiwan, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Japan, the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides circuit design, mask tooling, wafer fabrication, and assembly and testing services. It serves fabless design companies and integrated device manufacturers.