Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Shares Down 4.9% - Here's What Happened

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) fell 4.9% on Monday . The company traded as low as $92.88 and last traded at $94.45. 10,641,529 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 28,001,510 shares. The stock had previously closed at $99.34.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Micron Technology from $180.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Micron Technology from $145.00 to $110.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Micron Technology from $145.00 to $128.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Micron Technology in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Micron Technology from $114.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" 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 issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Micron Technology has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $135.24.

Micron Technology Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $114.97 billion, a PE ratio of 151.75 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.64. The firm's 50 day moving average is $98.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.65.

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

Micron Technology Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be given a dividend of $0.115 per share. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. Micron Technology's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.26%.

Insider Transactions at Micron Technology

In other Micron Technology news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of Micron Technology 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 181,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,442,011.83. The trade was a 2.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Micron Technology

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Stonebrook Private Inc. lifted its position in Micron Technology by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 2,454 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 2.5% during the third quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 4,063 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Micron Technology by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 600 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in Micron Technology by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 821 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PDS Planning Inc increased its stake in Micron Technology by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 4,382 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $454,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. 80.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.