Principal Securities Inc. Sells 7,743 Shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Principal Securities Inc. lessened its position in shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP - Free Report) by 27.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,655 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 7,743 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.'s holdings in Microchip Technology were worth $1,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC purchased a new stake in Microchip Technology during the fourth quarter valued at $331,000. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Microchip Technology by 172.3% in the fourth quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,185 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $584,000 after buying an additional 6,445 shares in the last quarter. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC increased its position in Microchip Technology by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC now owns 365,973 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $20,989,000 after buying an additional 33,334 shares in the last quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co increased its position in Microchip Technology by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 12,094 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $694,000 after buying an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in Microchip Technology by 30.9% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,145 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 1,215 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on MCHP shares. Citigroup reduced their price target on Microchip Technology from $92.00 to $82.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Microchip Technology from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on Microchip Technology from $85.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $95.00 price target (down previously from $101.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.11.

Microchip Technology Price Performance

Microchip Technology stock traded down $3.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $60.84. 4,953,329 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,401,507. The stock's fifty day moving average is $56.68 and its 200-day moving average is $68.16. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 12 month low of $50.21 and a 12 month high of $100.57. The stock has a market cap of $32.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 108.54 and a beta of 1.50. 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 (NASDAQ:MCHP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.15). Microchip Technology had a net margin of 6.49% and a return on equity of 12.62%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

Microchip Technology Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. Microchip Technology's payout ratio is 325.00%.

Microchip Technology Profile

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.