STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of STMicroelectronics from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Barclays set a $60.00 target price on STMicroelectronics in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of STMicroelectronics in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.17.

STMicroelectronics Stock Performance

Shares of STM opened at $51.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.08 and a current ratio of 2.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 101.45 and a beta of 1.93. The company’s fifty day moving average is $53.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.60. STMicroelectronics has a 1 year low of $21.11 and a 1 year high of $81.42.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The semiconductor producer reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. STMicroelectronics had a net margin of 3.56% and a return on equity of 4.30%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that STMicroelectronics will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On STMicroelectronics

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Situational Awareness LP purchased a new stake in STMicroelectronics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $584,344,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of STMicroelectronics by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,532,428 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock worth $273,211,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145,426 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of STMicroelectronics in the first quarter worth approximately $19,132,000. Beaconlight Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of STMicroelectronics in the first quarter worth approximately $13,284,000. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP grew its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,566,965 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $40,647,000 after purchasing an additional 265,108 shares during the period. 5.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

STMicroelectronics Company Profile

STMicroelectronics N.V. (NYSE: STM) is a global semiconductor company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of integrated circuits and electronic components. Its products are used in automotive systems, industrial equipment, personal electronics, communications infrastructure and other embedded applications.

The company’s portfolio includes microcontrollers and microprocessors, analog and mixed-signal devices, power semiconductors, sensors, MEMS devices, connectivity products and automotive semiconductors.