Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp cut its holdings in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP - Free Report) by 14.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 328,759 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 57,196 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned 0.06% of Microchip Technology worth $18,854,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Microchip Technology by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,912,345 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $3,952,123,000 after purchasing an additional 569,699 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Microchip Technology by 39.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 11,093,007 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $636,184,000 after buying an additional 3,131,807 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Microchip Technology by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,347,643 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $264,430,000 after buying an additional 776,408 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Microchip Technology by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,143,769 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $180,295,000 after buying an additional 116,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Microchip Technology by 9,901.6% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,857,654 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $163,886,000 after buying an additional 2,829,082 shares during the period. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microchip Technology Stock Up 0.2 %

Microchip Technology stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $48.50. The stock had a trading volume of 10,219,113 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,410,809. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 52-week low of $47.21 and a 52-week high of $100.57. The stock has a market cap of $26.08 billion, a PE ratio of 86.61 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $55.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.40.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.15). Microchip Technology had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 6.49%. On average, analysts predict that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.75%. Microchip Technology's payout ratio is currently 325.00%.

Insider Transactions at Microchip Technology

In other news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,724 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.88, for a total value of $226,717.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,025,599.36. This represents a 10.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MCHP shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Microchip Technology from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Bank of America cut Microchip Technology from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Microchip Technology from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.37.

About Microchip Technology

Microchip Technology Incorporated engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of 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 mixed-signal 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.