Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) Reaches New 1-Year Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Universal Display Corporation (NASDAQ:OLED)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Saturday after Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on the stock from $150.00 to $145.00. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock. Universal Display traded as low as $103.35 and last traded at $104.07, with a volume of 1981192 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $117.12.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on OLED. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Universal Display from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Universal Display in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Universal Display from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Universal Display from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $151.67.

Key Stories Impacting Universal Display

Here are the key news stories impacting Universal Display this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat and revenue growth — OLED reported $1.39 EPS vs. $1.28 expected and revenue of ~$173M, up 6.5% year-over-year, driven by strong material sales and royalties. OLED’s Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increase — UDC raised its quarterly cash dividend to $0.50/share (11.1% increase), which supports yield and shareholder return expectations. Universal Display Corporation Increases Quarterly Cash Dividend to $0.50 per Share
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call details available — Management provided color in the Q4/2025 earnings call and transcript; useful for judging cadence of material sales, royalty trajectory and margin outlook. Universal Display Corporation (OLED) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst target adjusted — Needham cut its price target from $150 to $145 but kept a “buy” rating, signaling continued confidence despite near-term headwinds. Analyst price target update
• Negative Sentiment: 2026 revenue guide below consensus — UDC guided revenue of $650M–$700M for FY2026, under the consensus (~$718.5M), which likely drove today’s selloff despite the beat. Investors are focused on the slower near-term demand outlook implied by the guide. Universal Display Corporation Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Negative Sentiment: Large holder exit — Peregrine sold ~50,560 shares (~$7.3M), reducing an institutional position; while not decisive alone, it can add selling pressure in thin windows. Peregrine Closes 50,000-Share OLED Position Worth USD7.3 Million

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Display

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Universal Display during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Universal Display by 309.8% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 209 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in Universal Display by 236.7% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 202 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in Universal Display during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Universal Display during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 78.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Universal Display Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $4.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $119.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $130.44.

Universal Display (NASDAQ:OLED) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The semiconductor company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.11. Universal Display had a net margin of 37.21% and a return on equity of 14.19%. The business had revenue of $172.93 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $173.35 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. Universal Display’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Universal Display Corporation will post 4.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Display Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Universal Display’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Universal Display’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.79%.

About Universal Display

Universal Display Corporation (NASDAQ: OLED) is a technology company specializing in organic light-emitting diode (OLED) solutions. The company develops and commercializes materials, technologies and software used in the creation of OLED displays and lighting. Its offerings include proprietary phosphorescent OLED (PHOLED) materials, display driver integrated circuits and process technologies that enable higher efficiency, longer lifetimes and improved color performance for a range of display and lighting applications.

Universal Display’s core business is licensing its extensive OLED patent portfolio to display manufacturers and providing them with the key organic materials needed for device fabrication.