Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP - Free Report) by 91.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 626,549 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 7,011,987 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.12% of Microchip Technology worth $30,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MCHP. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 309.5% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 475 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microchip Technology during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microchip Technology Stock Up 4.3%

Microchip Technology stock traded up $3.08 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $74.56. 11,350,360 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,916,358. The company's 50-day moving average is $62.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 2.59. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 52-week low of $34.13 and a 52-week high of $96.98. The firm has a market cap of $40.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7,456.00, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.52.

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

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. Microchip Technology's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -18,200.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MCHP shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 price objective on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Friday, May 9th. B. Riley boosted their price target on Microchip Technology from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on Microchip Technology from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Microchip Technology from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on Microchip Technology from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with 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 currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microchip Technology news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 2,015 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.78, for a total value of $112,396.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,913,979.14. This represents a 5.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Karlton D. Johnson sold 494 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.69, for a total transaction of $29,980.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,468 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $210,472.92. The trade was a 12.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.