American Century Companies Inc. Sells 286,094 Shares of Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI)

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its position in Analog Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADI) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,305,937 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 286,094 shares during the period. Analog Devices comprises 0.5% of American Century Companies Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Analog Devices were worth $914,840,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Analog Devices by 46.2% in the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 47,056 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $9,998,000 after acquiring an additional 14,879 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Analog Devices in the 4th quarter valued at $245,000. Washington Trust Bank increased its position in shares of Analog Devices by 306.5% during the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 9,521 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,023,000 after purchasing an additional 7,179 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Analog Devices by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 55,063 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $11,699,000 after purchasing an additional 2,881 shares during the period. Finally, Talos Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Analog Devices in the 4th quarter worth about $24,497,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Analog Devices news, CEO Vincent Roche sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.12, for a total transaction of $2,091,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 64,918 shares in the company, valued at $13,575,652.16. This trade represents a 13.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Richard C. Puccio, Jr. sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.19, for a total value of $836,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 49,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,441,928.04. The trade was a 7.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 24,000 shares of company stock worth $5,082,860. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analog Devices Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ADI opened at $204.40 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $217.17 and a 200 day moving average of $219.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market cap of $101.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.07. Analog Devices, Inc. has a 12 month low of $182.57 and a 12 month high of $247.10.

Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.09. Analog Devices had a net margin of 16.75% and a return on equity of 8.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.73 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Analog Devices, Inc. will post 7.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analog Devices announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor company to buy up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analog Devices Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.99 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. This is a boost from Analog Devices’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Analog Devices’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 126.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ADI shares. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Analog Devices from $245.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Analog Devices from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 price objective (up from $245.00) on shares of Analog Devices in a report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Analog Devices from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Maxim Group started coverage on Analog Devices in a research note on Friday, February 14th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Analog Devices has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $255.41.

About Analog Devices

Analog Devices, Inc designs, manufactures, tests, and markets integrated circuits (ICs), software, and subsystems products in the United States, rest of North and South America, Europe, Japan, China, and rest of Asia. The company provides data converter products, which translate real-world analog signals into digital data, as well as translates digital data into analog signals; power management and reference products for power conversion, driver monitoring, sequencing, and energy management applications in the automotive, communications, industrial, and consumer markets; and power ICs that include performance, integration, and software design simulation tools for accurate power supply designs.