Sowell Financial Services LLC Acquires New Holdings in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 6,564 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $318,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 309.5% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 475 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Microchip Technology during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.51% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on MCHP shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on Microchip Technology from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Friday, May 9th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Microchip Technology from $69.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on Microchip Technology from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.15.

Microchip Technology Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of MCHP traded up $1.17 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.60. The company had a trading volume of 7,585,678 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,878,821. The stock has a market cap of $38.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7,160.00, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.48. The company's 50 day moving average price is $56.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 52 week low of $34.13 and a 52 week high of $96.98.

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

Microchip Technology Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 22nd. Microchip Technology's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -18,200.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.