Heartland Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. has acquired 68,461 shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated for approximately $3.3 million in the first quarter, reflecting increased interest in the semiconductor sector.
• Institutional investors control **91.51%** of Microchip's stock, highlighting strong institutional support; notable transactions include Franklin Resources increasing its stake by 90% in the fourth quarter.
• Microchip Technology's quarterly earnings exceeded estimates, with an earnings per share of $0.11 compared to the consensus estimate of $0.10, although revenue fell by 26.8% year-over-year.

Heartland Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 68,461 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $3,314,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in Microchip Technology during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology in the first quarter valued at approximately $41,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 161.0% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 937 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 399.4% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 809 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MCHP shares. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Microchip Technology from $60.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Microchip Technology from $39.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $70.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microchip Technology has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.70.

Insider Activity at Microchip Technology

In other Microchip Technology news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 2,015 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.78, for a total value of $112,396.70. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,313 shares in the company, valued at $1,913,979.14. This trade represents a 5.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Karlton D. Johnson sold 494 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.69, for a total transaction of $29,980.86. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,468 shares of the company's stock, valued at $210,472.92. The trade was a 12.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.94% of the company's stock.

Microchip Technology Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MCHP traded up $0.04 on Wednesday, reaching $70.72. 2,162,168 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,443,297. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $38.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7,068.00, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a fifty day moving average of $68.23 and a 200-day moving average of $57.59. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a twelve month low of $34.13 and a twelve month high of $89.59.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The semiconductor company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $970.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $962.86 million. Microchip Technology had a negative net margin of 0.01% and a positive return on equity of 8.55%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 26.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.57 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd were given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.57%. Microchip Technology's dividend payout ratio is -18,200.00%.

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.