HighTower Advisors LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Universal Display Corporation $OLED

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Universal Display Corporation (NASDAQ:OLED) by 19.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,833 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after buying an additional 1,108 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Universal Display were worth $953,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Universal Display by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,603 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Universal Display by 0.8% in the first quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,319 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,718,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems raised its position in shares of Universal Display by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 7,820 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Universal Display by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 12,400 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,730,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Securian Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Universal Display by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,381 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $472,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. 78.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on OLED. Wall Street Zen raised Universal Display from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Universal Display from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Universal Display in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $190.43.

Universal Display Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of OLED opened at $141.05 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.86 and its 200 day moving average is $144.36. The company has a market capitalization of $6.70 billion, a PE ratio of 27.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 1.47. Universal Display Corporation has a 12-month low of $103.70 and a 12-month high of $215.90.

Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The semiconductor company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $171.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $161.58 million. Universal Display had a return on equity of 15.82% and a net margin of 36.95%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. Universal Display has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Universal Display Corporation will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Universal Display Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. Universal Display’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.16%.

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.