Universal Display (OLED) Research Coverage Started at Roth Capital

Roth Capital initiated coverage on shares of Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) in a report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $136.00 price objective on the semiconductor company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on OLED. Deutsche Bank reiterated a buy rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Universal Display in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of Universal Display from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Saturday, January 27th. BidaskClub lowered shares of Universal Display from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Cowen set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Universal Display and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Universal Display from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $180.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The stock presently has an average rating of Buy and a consensus price target of $174.36.

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NASDAQ OLED opened at $97.10 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $4.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.96 and a beta of 1.33. Universal Display has a 52 week low of $86.85 and a 52 week high of $209.00.

Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 3rd. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.13. The firm had revenue of $43.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.85 million. Universal Display had a net margin of 30.74% and a return on equity of 17.53%. Universal Display’s revenue was down 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.22 EPS. analysts forecast that Universal Display will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current year.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 14th. Universal Display’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.88%.

In other Universal Display news, Director Richard C. Elias sold 2,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.60, for a total transaction of $291,600.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Elizabeth H. Gemmill sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.07, for a total transaction of $310,175.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. LPL Financial LLC grew its position in Universal Display by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 18,128 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,130,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. grew its position in Universal Display by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 3,900 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $673,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Universal Display by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,291 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $741,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Glassman Wealth Services grew its position in Universal Display by 60.7% during the 4th quarter. Glassman Wealth Services now owns 961 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. grew its position in Universal Display by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 2,865 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. 65.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Universal Display Company Profile

Universal Display Corporation engages in the research, development, and commercialization of organic light emitting diode (OLED) technologies and materials for use in flat panel displays and solid-state lighting applications. As of February 22, 2018, it owned or had exclusive and co-exclusive licenses, or had sole license rights with respect to approximately 4,500 issued and pending patents worldwide.

Why Qudian Inc Stock Dropped 16.5% Today

What happened

Shares of�Qudian (NYSE:QD)�closed down 16.5% on Monday after the Chinese online lender announced earnings that fell short of expectations.

Qudian reported�"diluted adjusted net income per share"�of $0.16 but�GAAP diluted net income per share of only $0.15 per share. Whichever yardstick you use, though, these numbers appear to be lower than the $0.17-per-share estimate quoted on Yahoo! Finance. Revenue, on the other hand, came in at $273.7 million, significantly above consensus expectations�for $214.6 million.

Image source: Getty Images.

So what

Sales more than doubled (up 106%) year over year, but earnings in local currency declined 38%. CEO Min Luo attributed the earnings disappointment to "the temporary credit downturn in Chinese consumer credit markets following implementation of new regulations late last year as well as our proactive decision to temporarily tighten credit standards and de-risk our book."

Now what

Also affecting the stock, one imagines, is a small note inserted toward the end of Qudian's earnings release that said two members of the company's board of directors have resigned. "Mr.�Shilei Li�and Mr.�Yi Cao," said the company,�"have tendered their resignations as directors to the Company's board for personal reasons." The fact that both resignations occurred "effective as of the date of this press release," however, seems rather sudden, and suggests there may be more to this story.

But Qudian isn't saying what, and investors don't seem to be inclined to stick around and find out.

Cerner (CERN) Shares Bought by Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in Cerner (NASDAQ:CERN) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,650 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,425 shares during the quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Cerner were worth $1,082,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Icon Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Cerner in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $107,000. Cerebellum GP LLC acquired a new position in Cerner in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $127,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Cerner in the first quarter valued at approximately $116,000. Delpha Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Cerner in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $144,000. Finally, Virtue Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Cerner in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $197,000. 79.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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In other news, Vice Chairman Clifford W. Illig sold 307,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total transaction of $19,852,804.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,229,719 shares in the company, valued at $79,341,469.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Clifford W. Illig sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.32, for a total value of $174,960.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,229,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,717,212.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Cerner opened at $61.34 on Friday, MarketBeat reports. Cerner has a 12 month low of $52.05 and a 12 month high of $73.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.95 and a quick ratio of 2.93. The company has a market cap of $20.35 billion, a PE ratio of 27.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.96.

Cerner (NASDAQ:CERN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, hitting the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.58. Cerner had a return on equity of 15.80% and a net margin of 16.50%. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. sell-side analysts anticipate that Cerner will post 2.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CERN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Cerner in a report on Monday, March 5th. Wells Fargo set a $75.00 price objective on Cerner and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 31st. Bank of America initiated coverage on Cerner in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $75.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Investment Research cut Cerner from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 8th. Finally, BidaskClub cut Cerner from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.51.

Cerner Company Profile

Cerner Corporation provides health care information technology solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers Cerner Millennium architecture, a person-centric computing framework, which includes clinical, financial, and management information systems that allow providers to access an individual's electronic health record (EHR) at the point of care, and organizes and delivers information for physicians, nurses, laboratory technicians, pharmacists, front- and back-office professionals, and consumers.

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