Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Shares Down 3.5% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Micron Technology's stock saw a decline of 3.5%, dropping to a trading price of $105.32, with a notably lower trading volume compared to average sessions.
• Several analysts upgraded their ratings for Micron, with Barclays, UBS, and Rosenblatt Securities setting price targets significantly higher than previous estimates, reflecting positive investor sentiment.
• Micron recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.91 EPS, exceeding expectations, along with a new dividend of $0.115 per share, emphasizing its profitability despite the stock's downturn.

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 3.5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $103.38 and last traded at $105.32. 9,082,334 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 23,207,303 shares. The stock had previously closed at $109.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MU. Barclays raised their price target on Micron Technology from $95.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group increased their price target on Micron Technology from $120.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price target on Micron Technology from $172.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Micron Technology in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on Micron Technology from $120.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Micron Technology has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $146.44.

Micron Technology Trading Down 4.2%

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.94. The company has a current ratio of 2.75, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $117.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.86 and a beta of 1.35.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $9.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.83 billion. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 13.60% and a net margin of 18.41%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 6.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Micron Technology Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, July 7th were issued a $0.115 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 7th. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Micron Technology's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Sumit Sadana sold 92,638 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.49, for a total value of $11,625,142.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 201,326 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,264,399.74. This represents a 31.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott J. Deboer sold 20,000 shares of Micron Technology stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total transaction of $2,200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 186,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,498,830. This trade represents a 9.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 286,042 shares of company stock worth $34,679,277 in the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Micron Technology

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its holdings in Micron Technology by 23.0% in the second quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 175,540 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $21,635,000 after purchasing an additional 32,800 shares in the last quarter. Rossby Financial LCC lifted its position in shares of Micron Technology by 57.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 380 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Micron Technology during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $272,000. United Capital Management of KS Inc. boosted its position in shares of Micron Technology by 9.6% in the 2nd quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. now owns 17,901 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $2,206,000 after purchasing an additional 1,563 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Micron Technology by 0.8% during the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 16,668 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $2,053,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. 80.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Micron Technology Company Profile

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.

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