Quantessence Capital LLC Takes Position in Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO)

Quantessence Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 12,169 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock, valued at approximately $2,821,000. Broadcom accounts for about 1.2% of Quantessence Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AVGO. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Broadcom during the fourth quarter worth about $16,893,010,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Broadcom by 1,114.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 21,113,921 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $3,849,270,000 after purchasing an additional 19,375,547 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Broadcom by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,213,160 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $2,367,819,000 after acquiring an additional 6,809,245 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Broadcom by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 475,134,603 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $110,155,206,000 after purchasing an additional 6,573,204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Broadcom by 1,019.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,182,409 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $1,238,966,000 after buying an additional 6,540,800 shares during the last quarter. 76.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Broadcom Price Performance

Shares of Broadcom stock traded up $4.16 on Friday, hitting $192.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,216,875 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,280,654. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $185.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $195.94. Broadcom Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.33 and a 52-week high of $251.88. The company has a market capitalization of $904.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 156.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.05.

Broadcom Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Broadcom's dividend payout ratio is presently 113.46%.

Broadcom declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, April 7th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the semiconductor manufacturer to reacquire up to 1.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AVGO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup dropped their price target on Broadcom from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Broadcom in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Broadcom from $260.00 to $250.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Broadcom from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Broadcom from $260.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $229.48.

Insider Transactions at Broadcom

In related news, insider Mark David Brazeal sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.65, for a total transaction of $5,839,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 490,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at $95,564,585.40. This trade represents a 5.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Henry Samueli sold 663,976 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.60, for a total transaction of $120,578,041.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,798,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,045,847,733.60. The trade was a 1.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 719,776 shares of company stock valued at $131,065,542 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Broadcom Company Profile

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.