Jennison Associates LLC Increases Stake in Universal Display Co. (NASDAQ:OLED)

Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Universal Display Co. (NASDAQ:OLED) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 903,068 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 3,397 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned 1.91% of Universal Display worth $172,721,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Universal Display by 0.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,511,145 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $708,205,000 after purchasing an additional 23,944 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Universal Display by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,398,961 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $219,623,000 after buying an additional 134,000 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Display by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 559,472 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $87,832,000 after acquiring an additional 2,418 shares in the last quarter. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC lifted its position in Universal Display by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC now owns 408,489 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $64,129,000 after acquiring an additional 75,732 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in Universal Display by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 309,804 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $59,253,000 after acquiring an additional 18,582 shares during the period. 78.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price (up previously from $161.00) on shares of Universal Display in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price objective (down previously from $210.00) on shares of Universal Display in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $198.00 target price on shares of Universal Display in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Universal Display from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Universal Display currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.86.

Universal Display Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:OLED traded up $1.47 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $151.28. 60,302 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 279,478. Universal Display Co. has a one year low of $125.98 and a one year high of $194.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $168.17 and a 200 day moving average of $169.33. The company has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.45.

Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The semiconductor company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.11. Universal Display had a net margin of 35.22% and a return on equity of 14.85%. The firm had revenue of $158.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $161.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.36 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Universal Display Co. will post 4.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Display Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Universal Display’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Universal Display’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.74%.

Universal Display Company Profile

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.