Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Market Beat.com reports.

According to Zacks, “Texas Instruments is one of the largest suppliers of analog integrated circuits. Fourth-quarter earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Though the communications, personal electronics and other markets were weak, the recovering auto and industrial markets helped the company to deliver good results. The company’s compelling product line, market share gains, strategic refocus on high-growth areas of the analog and embedded processing markets are positives.  We recognize that the channel is more conservative than it has been before and remain concerned about the risks associated with a high debt level.”

In other news, EVP Brian T. Crutcher sold 25,802 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.98, for a total value of $1,341,187.96. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 366,109 shares in the company, valued at $19,030,345.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Richard K. Templeton sold 65,385 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.99, for a total value of $3,399,366.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,093,984 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,876,228.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on TXN. B. Riley restated a “hold” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Texas Instruments in a research note on Thursday, January 28th. Barclays cut their price target on Texas Instruments from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 28th. Goldman Sachs lowered Texas Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $47.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, February 2nd. Sterne Agee CRT reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price target (up previously from $60.00) on shares of Texas Instruments in a research report on Saturday, January 30th. Finally, Drexel Hamilton started coverage on Texas Instruments in a research report on Tuesday, March 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.79.

Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN) traded up 0.908% during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $58.345. 2,701,902 shares of the stock traded hands. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $55.85 and its 200-day moving average is $54.46. The company has a market cap of $58.65 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.668. Texas Instruments has a 52-week low of $43.49 and a 52-week high of $59.67.

Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 27th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.21 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. Texas Instruments’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Texas Instruments will post $2.89 EPS for the current year.

Several large investors recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Texas Instruments during the fourth quarter worth about $486,686,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in Texas Instruments by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,103,922 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $224,929,000 after buying an additional 622,207 shares during the period. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Texas Instruments by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,520,346 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $192,951,000 after buying an additional 194,546 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Texas Instruments by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,206,183 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $175,730,000 after buying an additional 10,803 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Texas Instruments by 73.1% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,885,686 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $158,164,000 after buying an additional 1,219,061 shares during the period.

Texas Instruments Incorporated designs, makes and sells semiconductors to electronics designers and manufacturers across the world. The Company operates through two segments: Analog and Embedded Processing. The Company’s Analog segment includes the following product lines: High Volume Analog & Logic, Power Management, High Performance Analog and Silicon Valley Analog.