Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $228.00, but opened at $235.22. Broadcom shares last traded at $234.53, with a volume of 3,930,561 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on AVGO. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Broadcom from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Broadcom from $201.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Broadcom from $210.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Broadcom from $205.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Broadcom from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.83.

Broadcom Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.11 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 193.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.03. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $200.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $177.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

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

Broadcom Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were given a $0.59 dividend. This is an increase from Broadcom’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 23rd. Broadcom’s payout ratio is currently 192.50%.

Insider Transactions at Broadcom

In other news, Director Check Kian Low sold 48,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $235.35, for a total transaction of $11,296,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 113,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,606,317.50. The trade was a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Charlie B. Kawwas sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 696,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,627,425.40. This trade represents a 5.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 191,278 shares of company stock valued at $44,964,800. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Broadcom

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AVGO. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA boosted its position in shares of Broadcom by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 1,685 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $391,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Defined Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Broadcom by 0.4% in the fourth 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. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its stake in Broadcom by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 5,392 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $1,250,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Kades & Cheifetz LLC raised its holdings in Broadcom by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Kades & Cheifetz LLC now owns 6,623 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $1,536,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Broadcom by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,584 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $2,222,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. 76.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.