Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Stock Price Down 10.8% - Here's Why

Shares of Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) were down 10.8% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $92.51 and last traded at $92.06. Approximately 17,527,897 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 29% from the average daily volume of 24,559,479 shares. The stock had previously closed at $103.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MU. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Micron Technology from $140.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Micron Technology from $145.00 to $128.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Micron Technology from $175.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group cut their price target on Micron Technology from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $180.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Micron Technology currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $134.96.

Micron Technology Stock Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is $98.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.21 billion, a PE ratio of 25.66 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.72.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.71 billion. Micron Technology had a net margin of 13.34% and a return on equity of 8.32%. Micron Technology's revenue for the quarter was up 84.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.95) EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Micron Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 30th were paid a dividend of $0.115 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 30th. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. Micron Technology's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.26%.

Insider Transactions at Micron Technology

In other Micron Technology news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.21, for a total value of $416,676.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 181,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,442,011.83. This trade represents a 2.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Micron Technology

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Naples Global Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Micron Technology by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 38,311 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $3,228,000 after purchasing an additional 3,557 shares in the last quarter. Channing Global Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Channing Global Advisors LLC now owns 45,708 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $3,847,000 after acquiring an additional 13,713 shares in the last quarter. Harvey Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Micron Technology during the fourth quarter worth about $2,050,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 723,479 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $63,181,000 after acquiring an additional 58,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Micron Technology by 25.0% in the fourth quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 8,013 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.84% of the company's stock.

About Micron Technology

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.