Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) Shares Gap Up After Dividend Announcement

Shares of Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $179.45, but opened at $187.73. Broadcom shares last traded at $188.53, with a volume of 8,244,385 shares trading hands.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Broadcom’s payout ratio is 191.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on AVGO shares. Citigroup raised their price target on Broadcom from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Broadcom from $265.00 to $246.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Broadcom from $205.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price objective on shares of Broadcom in a research report on Friday. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on Broadcom from $200.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.44.

Broadcom Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $872.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 151.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $223.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $192.55.

Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 12th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $14.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.98 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 51.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Broadcom Inc. will post 5.38 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Broadcom

In related news, Director Eddy W. Hartenstein sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.64, for a total transaction of $918,560.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 46,400 shares in the company, valued at $10,655,296. This represents a 7.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Hock E. Tan sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.96, for a total transaction of $10,798,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 842,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $202,246,926.56. This trade represents a 5.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 191,278 shares of company stock worth $44,964,800 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Broadcom

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. KFA Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Broadcom by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. KFA Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,756 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA boosted its stake in Broadcom by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 1,685 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $391,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Bryant Woods Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Broadcom by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Bryant Woods Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,317 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Marest Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Broadcom by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Marest Capital LLC now owns 4,539 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,052,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Defined Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Broadcom by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Defined Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,712 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,947,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. 76.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.