Universal Display Co. (NASDAQ:OLED) Increases Dividend to $0.45 Per Share

Universal Display Co. (NASDAQ:OLED) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, February 21st, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of 0.45 per share by the semiconductor company on Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This is a boost from Universal Display’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40.

Universal Display has increased its dividend payment by an average of 26.0% annually over the last three years. Universal Display has a payout ratio of 26.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Universal Display to earn $4.71 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 34.0%.

Universal Display Stock Performance

Shares of Universal Display stock traded up $10.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $157.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,472,334 shares, compared to its average volume of 701,725. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $173.82. The company has a market capitalization of $7.47 billion, a PE ratio of 31.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.39. Universal Display has a 52 week low of $140.17 and a 52 week high of $237.00.

Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The semiconductor company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $162.29 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $152.75 million. Universal Display had a net margin of 36.98% and a return on equity of 15.75%. As a group, analysts predict that Universal Display will post 4.77 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on OLED shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Universal Display from $234.00 to $203.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Universal Display from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Universal Display from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Universal Display from $200.00 to $162.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Universal Display from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.43.

About Universal Display

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.