Hantz Financial Services Inc. Makes New $1.37 Million Investment in STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 54,674 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,365,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in STMicroelectronics by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 11,159 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 1,491 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its stake in STMicroelectronics by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 65,561 shares of the semiconductor producer’s stock valued at $1,637,000 after buying an additional 749 shares during the last quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in STMicroelectronics in the 4th quarter valued at $295,000. Grandview Asset Management LLC bought a new position in STMicroelectronics in the 4th quarter worth $696,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co acquired a new position in STMicroelectronics during the 4th quarter worth $583,000. 5.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

STMicroelectronics Stock Performance

NYSE STM opened at $22.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $20.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.22, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. STMicroelectronics has a twelve month low of $21.96 and a twelve month high of $49.05. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.14.

STMicroelectronics (NYSE:STM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor producer reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.02. STMicroelectronics had a return on equity of 13.29% and a net margin of 16.11%. As a group, research analysts forecast that STMicroelectronics will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

STMicroelectronics Announces Dividend

The company 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 $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 25th. STMicroelectronics’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of STMicroelectronics in a research note on Monday, December 9th. TD Cowen lowered STMicroelectronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $25.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of STMicroelectronics from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Citigroup raised shares of STMicroelectronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays downgraded shares of STMicroelectronics from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.40.

STMicroelectronics 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.