Gray Foundation Takes Position in Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI)

Gray Foundation acquired a new stake in shares of Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 8,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,700,000. Analog Devices comprises approximately 0.5% of Gray Foundation’s holdings, making the stock its 10th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ADI. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Analog Devices by 14.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,176,877 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,169,689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,189,940 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of Analog Devices by 807.5% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 959,686 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $220,891,000 after acquiring an additional 853,931 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Analog Devices by 336.4% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,068,572 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $245,953,000 after acquiring an additional 823,709 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Analog Devices by 17.3% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,754,759 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,078,617,000 after acquiring an additional 700,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Analog Devices by 9.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,388,628 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,700,640,000 after acquiring an additional 665,149 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Analog Devices

In other news, CEO Vincent Roche sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.49, for a total value of $2,154,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 21,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,737,116.67. This represents a 31.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analog Devices Price Performance

ADI opened at $236.99 on Tuesday. Analog Devices, Inc. has a 12-month low of $182.57 and a 12-month high of $247.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $215.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $220.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.47, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.04.

Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.09. Analog Devices had a return on equity of 8.91% and a net margin of 16.75%. The business had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.73 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Analog Devices, Inc. will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analog Devices declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the semiconductor company to reacquire up to 9.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analog Devices Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.99 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. This is a boost from Analog Devices’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Analog Devices’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 126.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ADI shares. Barclays cut their target price on Analog Devices from $250.00 to $210.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Analog Devices in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Analog Devices from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Analog Devices from $270.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Benchmark boosted their price objective on Analog Devices from $245.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $255.41.

About Analog Devices

Analog Devices, Inc designs, manufactures, tests, and markets integrated circuits (ICs), software, and subsystems products in the United States, rest of North and South America, Europe, Japan, China, and rest of Asia. The company provides data converter products, which translate real-world analog signals into digital data, as well as translates digital data into analog signals; power management and reference products for power conversion, driver monitoring, sequencing, and energy management applications in the automotive, communications, industrial, and consumer markets; and power ICs that include performance, integration, and software design simulation tools for accurate power supply designs.