Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Stock Price

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) had its price target cut by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $112.00 to $98.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the semiconductor manufacturer's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would indicate a potential upside of 14.14% from the company's previous close.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Micron Technology in a research report on Friday, March 21st. KGI Securities raised Micron Technology to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price target on Micron Technology from $250.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $115.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "underperform" rating on shares of Micron Technology in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Micron Technology currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $126.48.

Micron Technology Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MU traded up $0.71 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $85.86. 13,006,441 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,325,824. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.74 and a beta of 1.21. Micron Technology has a 1-year low of $61.54 and a 1-year high of $157.54. The company has a 50-day moving average of $82.62 and a 200 day moving average of $92.99.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $8.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.93 billion. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 8.32% and a net margin of 13.34%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 38.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.42 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Micron Technology will post 6.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Micron Technology

In other news, Director Mary Pat Mccarthy sold 2,404 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $192,320.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,954 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,996,320. This trade represents a 8.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total transaction of $1,442,700.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 164,769 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,847,482.42. The trade was a 8.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 19,808 shares of company stock valued at $1,858,424 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Micron Technology during the fourth quarter worth about $1,470,875,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 63.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 41,096,391 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $3,458,673,000 after buying an additional 15,993,036 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Micron Technology by 34.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 47,672,462 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $4,012,114,000 after acquiring an additional 12,249,341 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of Micron Technology by 139.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 16,281,620 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $1,370,280,000 after acquiring an additional 9,489,579 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its position in shares of Micron Technology by 36.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 16,437,080 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $1,383,442,000 after acquiring an additional 4,375,232 shares during the last quarter. 80.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Micron Technology

Micron Technology, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells memory and storage products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Compute and Networking Business Unit, Mobile Business Unit, Embedded Business Unit, and Storage Business Unit. It provides memory and storage technologies comprising dynamic random access memory semiconductor devices with low latency that provide high-speed data retrieval; non-volatile and re-writeable semiconductor storage devices; and non-volatile re-writable semiconductor memory devices that provide fast read speeds under the Micron and Crucial brands, as well as through private labels.