Universal Display Co. (NASDAQ:OLED) Short Interest Down 18.5% in February

Universal Display Co. (NASDAQ:OLED) saw a large drop in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,410,000 shares, a drop of 18.5% from the January 31st total of 1,730,000 shares. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 702,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.0 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Display

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Universal Display during the fourth quarter valued at $95,924,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Display during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,504,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Universal Display in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,981,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Universal Display by 58.2% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 683,822 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $99,975,000 after buying an additional 251,557 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in Universal Display by 1,387.6% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 261,723 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $54,936,000 after buying an additional 244,129 shares during the last quarter. 78.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Universal Display Stock Performance

Shares of OLED stock traded up $3.91 on Wednesday, reaching $152.76. 547,549 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 748,116. The company has a market capitalization of $7.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.39. Universal Display has a 12-month low of $140.17 and a 12-month high of $237.00. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $148.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $172.73.

Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The semiconductor company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $162.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $152.75 million. Universal Display had a return on equity of 15.51% and a net margin of 34.29%. Research analysts predict that Universal Display will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Display Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This is an increase from Universal Display’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. Universal Display’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on OLED. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of Universal Display from $207.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Universal Display from $234.00 to $203.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their target price on Universal Display from $215.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Universal Display from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on Universal Display from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $190.43.

About Universal Display

Universal Display Corporation engages in the research, development, and commercialization of organic light emitting diode (OLED) technologies and materials for use in display and solid-state lighting applications in the United States and internationally. The company offers PHOLED technologies and materials for displays and lighting products under the UniversalPHOLED brand.