Microchip Technology Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders bought 11,939 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 49% compared to the typical volume of 7,986 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Mizuho set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Friday, October 18th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Microchip Technology from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target (down from $101.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $92.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company 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 assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.63.

Institutional Trading of Microchip Technology

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 776,408 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 9.6% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 70,644 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $5,672,000 after purchasing an additional 6,191 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in Microchip Technology by 3.2% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 36,267 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,912,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in Microchip Technology by 16.6% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 60,394 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $4,849,000 after buying an additional 8,592 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Microchip Technology in the 3rd quarter valued at $223,000. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microchip Technology Stock Down 0.2 %

MCHP stock opened at $58.34 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.80 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a 50-day moving average of $66.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.32. Microchip Technology has a 52-week low of $55.27 and a 52-week high of $100.57. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.03. Microchip Technology had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 14.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 48.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology will post 1.33 EPS for the current year.

Microchip Technology Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This is a boost from Microchip Technology’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio is presently 127.27%.

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.