Financial Contrast: BE Semiconductor Industries (OTCMKTS:BESIY) vs. United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC)

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) and BE Semiconductor Industries (OTCMKTS:BESIY) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Dividends

United Microelectronics pays an annual dividend of $0.35 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. BE Semiconductor Industries pays an annual dividend of $1.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. United Microelectronics pays out 50.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. BE Semiconductor Industries pays out 82.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. United Microelectronics is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for United Microelectronics and BE Semiconductor Industries, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Microelectronics	0	1	2	0	2.67
BE Semiconductor Industries	0	0	0	0	N/A

United Microelectronics currently has a consensus price target of $8.90, indicating a potential upside of 1.71%. Given United Microelectronics’ higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe United Microelectronics is more favorable than BE Semiconductor Industries.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares United Microelectronics and BE Semiconductor Industries”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Microelectronics	$7.25 billion	3.03	$1.95 billion	$0.70	12.50
BE Semiconductor Industries	$626.45 million	N/A	$191.66 million	$2.39	50.79

United Microelectronics has higher revenue and earnings than BE Semiconductor Industries. United Microelectronics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than BE Semiconductor Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

5.1% of United Microelectronics shares are held by institutional investors. 8.0% of United Microelectronics shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of BE Semiconductor Industries shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

United Microelectronics has a beta of 1.18, indicating that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BE Semiconductor Industries has a beta of 1.75, indicating that its share price is 75% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares United Microelectronics and BE Semiconductor Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Microelectronics	23.90%	14.80%	9.41%
BE Semiconductor Industries	28.56%	38.81%	18.45%

Summary

United Microelectronics beats BE Semiconductor Industries on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. The company was incorporated in 1980 and is headquartered in Hsinchu City, Taiwan.

About BE Semiconductor Industries

BE Semiconductor Industries N.V. engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, sale, and service of semiconductor assembly equipment for the semiconductor and electronics industries in China, the United States, Malaysia, Ireland, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Other Asia Pacific and Europe, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Die Attach, Packaging, and Plating. The company's principal products include die attach equipment, such as single chip, multi-chip, multi module, flip chip, thermal compression bonding, fan out wafer level packaging, hybrid and embedded bridge die bonding, and die sorting systems; and packaging equipment, including conventional, ultra-thin, and wafer level molding, as well as trim and form, and singulation systems. It also provides plating equipment, such as tin, copper, and precious metal and solar plating systems, as well as related process chemicals; and tooling, conversion kits, spare parts, and other services. The company's principal brand names include Datacon, Esec, Fico, and Meco. It offers its products primarily to multinational chip manufacturers, assembly subcontractors, and electronics and industrial companies. BE Semiconductor Industries N.V. was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Duiven, the Netherlands.