Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Stock Price Down 0.4% - Time to Sell?

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) shares traded down 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $96.87 and last traded at $99.06. 7,561,489 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 28,728,939 shares. The stock had previously closed at $99.41.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Micron Technology from $180.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Micron Technology from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Micron Technology from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Micron Technology from $114.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on Micron Technology from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $135.24.

Micron Technology Stock Down 0.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $110.68 billion, a PE ratio of 146.09 and a beta of 1.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $98.69 and a 200 day moving average of $103.97.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.71 billion. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 1.58% and a net margin of 3.10%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 84.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.95) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 8.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Micron Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be issued a $0.115 dividend. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. Micron Technology's payout ratio is currently 13.26%.

Insider Activity

In other Micron Technology news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.21, for a total transaction of $416,676.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 181,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,442,011.83. This trade represents a 2.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Micron Technology

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Micron Technology by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,564,198 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $1,109,769,000 after buying an additional 2,477,985 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 21.7% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 11,326,224 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $1,174,643,000 after acquiring an additional 2,022,180 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 3.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 48,226,710 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $5,001,592,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434,568 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Micron Technology by 254.4% during the third quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,859,416 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $192,840,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Micron Technology by 1,233.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,430,619 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $145,470,000 after purchasing an additional 1,323,352 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.84% of the company's stock.

Micron Technology Company Profile

Micron Technology, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells memory and storage products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Compute and Networking Business Unit, Mobile Business Unit, Embedded Business Unit, and Storage Business Unit. It provides memory and storage technologies comprising dynamic random access memory semiconductor devices with low latency that provide high-speed data retrieval; non-volatile and re-writeable semiconductor storage devices; and non-volatile re-writable semiconductor memory devices that provide fast read speeds under the Micron and Crucial brands, as well as through private labels.