Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) Trading Down 1.3% – What’s Next?

Shares of Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) were down 1.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $236.12 and last traded at $237.90. Approximately 4,668,165 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 24,396,623 shares. The stock had previously closed at $240.91.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AVGO. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Broadcom from $205.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Broadcom from $205.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Broadcom from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Broadcom from $233.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $255.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Broadcom in a report on Friday, December 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Broadcom has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.83.

Broadcom Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $208.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $180.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.15 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 199.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.03.

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 12th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.03. Broadcom had a net margin of 11.43% and a return on equity of 28.00%. The business had revenue of $14.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 51.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Broadcom Inc. will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadcom Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 23rd were issued a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 23rd. This is a boost from Broadcom’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Broadcom’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 192.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Mark David Brazeal sold 20,168 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.79, for a total value of $4,815,916.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 321,660 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $76,809,191.40. This represents a 5.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Charlie B. Kawwas sold 40,000 shares of Broadcom stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.98, for a total transaction of $9,279,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 696,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,627,425.40. The trade was a 5.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 191,278 shares of company stock valued at $44,964,800. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Broadcom

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Castleview Partners LLC raised its stake in Broadcom by 1,030.8% in the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 147 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Broadcom by 900.0% during the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 150 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. JDM Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Broadcom by 1,323.1% in the third quarter. JDM Financial Group LLC now owns 185 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Broadcom in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC raised its holdings in Broadcom by 1,073.7% during the third quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 223 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.43% of the company’s stock.

About Broadcom

Broadcom Inc designs, develops, and supplies various semiconductor devices with a focus on complex digital and mixed signal complementary metal oxide semiconductor based devices and analog III-V based products worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Semiconductor Solutions and Infrastructure Software.