Short Interest in NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ:NXPI) Drops By 16.5%

NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ:NXPI) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,570,000 shares, a decrease of 16.5% from the February 28th total of 10,260,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,810,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days. Currently, 3.4% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Insider Activity at NXP Semiconductors

In other NXP Semiconductors news, COO Andrew Micallef sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.86, for a total transaction of $204,860.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,808,504.08. The trade was a 10.18 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of NXP Semiconductors

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in NXP Semiconductors in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $13,445,000. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NXP Semiconductors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $360,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of NXP Semiconductors in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Austin Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in NXP Semiconductors by 140.6% during the fourth quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,198 shares of the semiconductor provider’s stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 1,869 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in NXP Semiconductors by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 98,558 shares of the semiconductor provider’s stock valued at $21,068,000 after purchasing an additional 2,609 shares in the last quarter. 90.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NXP Semiconductors Stock Up 1.9 %

NXPI traded up $3.67 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $193.67. The company had a trading volume of 2,227,032 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,433,534. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $213.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $221.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.60. NXP Semiconductors has a 12 month low of $183.56 and a 12 month high of $296.08. The company has a market cap of $49.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.90, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.47.

NXP Semiconductors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.014 per share. This represents a $4.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 19th. NXP Semiconductors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered NXP Semiconductors from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of NXP Semiconductors in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Citigroup raised shares of NXP Semiconductors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $210.00 to $290.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of NXP Semiconductors from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on NXP Semiconductors from $280.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $267.00.

About NXP Semiconductors

NXP Semiconductors N.V. offers various semiconductor products. The company's product portfolio includes microcontrollers; application processors, including i.MX application processors, and i.MX 8 and 9 family of applications processors; communication processors; wireless connectivity solutions, such as near field communications, ultra-wideband, Bluetooth low-energy, Zigbee, and Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi/Bluetooth integrated SoCs; analog and interface devices; radio frequency power amplifiers; and security controllers, as well as semiconductor-based environmental and inertial sensors, including pressure, inertial, magnetic, and gyroscopic sensors.