Argent Trust Co Has $702,000 Stock Holdings in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Argent Trust Co lowered its position in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP - Free Report) by 90.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,241 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 112,375 shares during the quarter. Argent Trust Co's holdings in Microchip Technology were worth $702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Microchip Technology by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,052 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $878,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Microchip Technology in the third quarter worth $491,000. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 3.3% in the third quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 11,517 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $925,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Microchip Technology by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 42,882 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $3,443,000 after acquiring an additional 4,477 shares during the period. Finally, Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology during the third quarter valued at about $223,000. 91.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Microchip Technology from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Microchip Technology from $71.00 to $58.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.26.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microchip Technology

In related 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 transaction of $226,717.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,272 shares in the company, valued at $2,025,599.36. This represents a 10.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Microchip Technology Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MCHP traded up $0.53 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $38.48. The stock had a trading volume of 3,363,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,037,628. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.30. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 12-month low of $34.13 and a 12-month high of $100.57. The stock has a market cap of $20.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.96 and a beta of 1.51.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share (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%. On average, equities analysts expect that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.73%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Microchip Technology's payout ratio is currently 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.