Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) Hits New 12-Month Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Friday after Mizuho lowered their price target on the stock from $85.00 to $72.00. Mizuho currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Microchip Technology traded as low as $54.81 and last traded at $54.98, with a volume of 493847 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $56.38.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target (down from $101.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Microchip Technology from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.11.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microchip Technology

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 25.1% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,961,200 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $599,239,000 after acquiring an additional 1,597,263 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Microchip Technology by 2.4% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,455,317 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $407,660,000 after purchasing an additional 103,807 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Microchip Technology by 30.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,347,643 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $264,430,000 after purchasing an additional 776,408 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 21.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,298,771 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $301,797,000 after purchasing an additional 575,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,164,101 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $289,515,000 after buying an additional 136,995 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.51% of the company’s stock.

Microchip Technology Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $29.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.59 and a beta of 1.52. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $62.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.03. Microchip Technology had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 14.22%. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.54 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 48.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This is an increase from Microchip Technology’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 127.27%.

Microchip Technology Company 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.