Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) Downgraded to Neutral at Bank of America

Bank of America cut shares of Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has $90.00 target price on the semiconductor company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $110.00.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on MCHP. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a buy rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their price target on Microchip Technology from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Microchip Technology from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Mizuho upgraded Microchip Technology from a neutral rating to a buy rating and boosted their price target for the company from $85.00 to $115.00 in a report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Microchip Technology from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $99.15.

Microchip Technology Trading Down 10.6 %

Shares of MCHP traded down $8.94 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $75.43. 17,482,866 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,510,382. The stock has a market cap of $40.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.74 and a beta of 1.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $91.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.39. Microchip Technology has a 12 month low of $68.75 and a 12 month high of $100.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The semiconductor company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.24 billion. Microchip Technology had a return on equity of 27.82% and a net margin of 20.80%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 45.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.56 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Microchip Technology will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.454 per share. This is an increase from Microchip Technology’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microchip Technology news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,188 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.98, for a total transaction of $318,736.24. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,257 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,325,034.86. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Matthew W. Chapman sold 2,748 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.88, for a total transaction of $257,982.24. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 35,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,349,826.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,188 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.98, for a total transaction of $318,736.24. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,257 shares in the company, valued at $3,325,034.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 23,993 shares of company stock valued at $2,251,857. Company insiders own 2.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Microchip Technology in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Steph & Co. lifted its stake in Microchip Technology by 57.4% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 414 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Microchip Technology in the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. 91.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microchip Technology Company Profile

Microchip Technology Incorporated develops, manufactures, and sells smart, connected, and secure embedded control solutions in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company offers general purpose 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit microcontrollers; 32-bit embedded mixed-signal microprocessors; and specialized microcontrollers for automotive, industrial, computing, communications, lighting, power supplies, motor control, human machine interface, security, wired connectivity, and wireless connectivity applications.