GPM Growth Investors Inc. Has $4.31 Million Position in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

GPM Growth Investors Inc. lessened its position in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,096 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 1,655 shares during the period. Microchip Technology accounts for about 1.8% of GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s holdings in Microchip Technology were worth $4,307,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of 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 last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 3.9% in the 4th 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. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 9,901.6% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,857,654 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $163,886,000 after buying an additional 2,829,082 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 20.1% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,751,987 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $220,957,000 after buying an additional 460,697 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Microchip Technology

In related news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,724 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.88, for a total transaction of $226,717.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,025,599.36. This trade represents a 10.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. KeyCorp reduced their price target on Microchip Technology from $70.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Microchip Technology from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America lowered Microchip Technology from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $80.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Microchip Technology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.37.

Microchip Technology Stock Performance

Shares of Microchip Technology stock opened at $59.64 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $32.08 billion, a PE ratio of 106.50 and a beta of 1.52. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 52 week low of $50.21 and a 52 week high of $100.57. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $56.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.99. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date 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.