Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM) Trading Down 1% - Should You Sell?

Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM - Get Free Report) fell 1% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $204.55 and last traded at $205.27. 3,893,859 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 15,077,289 shares. The stock had previously closed at $207.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TSM. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $215.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, November 17th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 price target on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a "buy" rating on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in a report on Friday, October 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $214.00.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average is $194.46 and its 200-day moving average is $180.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.07 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.07, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 2.30.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The semiconductor company reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.20. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing had a return on equity of 27.44% and a net margin of 39.10%. The company had revenue of $23.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.72 billion. On average, research analysts expect that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.5484 dividend. This is an increase from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.10%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FWG Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. FWG Holdings LLC now owns 3,106 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $539,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Defender Capital LLC. raised its position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Defender Capital LLC. now owns 1,565 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC boosted its holdings in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 1.2% in the third quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 4,635 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $805,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Logan Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 20.1% during the third quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 334 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Heron Bay Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Heron Bay Capital Management now owns 5,710 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $992,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 16.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, packages, tests, and sells integrated circuits and other semiconductor devices in Taiwan, China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, the United States, and internationally. It provides a range of wafer fabrication processes, including processes to manufacture complementary metal- oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) logic, mixed-signal, radio frequency, embedded memory, bipolar CMOS mixed-signal, and others.