Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 31,120,000 shares, a growth of 26.1% from the May 31st total of 24,670,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,450,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Price Performance

NYSE TSM traded up $3.37 on Tuesday, hitting $175.70. The company had a trading volume of 10,589,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,043,256. The company has a market capitalization of $911.25 billion, a PE ratio of 33.62, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $156.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $135.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 2.13. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing has a 12-month low of $84.01 and a 12-month high of $184.86.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The semiconductor company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.09. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing had a net margin of 38.15% and a return on equity of 24.75%. The company had revenue of $18.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.38 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.4865 per share. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 12th. This is a boost from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s payout ratio is 32.76%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TSM. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 208.9% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 312 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. North Star Investment Management Corp. boosted its position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 670.4% during the 1st quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 208 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.51% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.60.

About Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, packages, tests, and sells integrated circuits and other semiconductor devices in Taiwan, China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, the United States, and internationally. It provides a range of wafer fabrication processes, including processes to manufacture complementary metal- oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) logic, mixed-signal, radio frequency, embedded memory, bipolar CMOS mixed-signal, and others.