Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Trading 4.2% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Micron Technology's stock price increased by 4.2% following an upgrade from Wall Street Zen, enhancing its rating from "buy" to "strong-buy."
• Analysts have set a consensus price target of $184.77 for Micron, with several upgrading their forecasts significantly, including Deutsche Bank raising it to $200.00.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.115 per share, payable on October 21st, representing an annualized yield of 0.3%.

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 4.2% during mid-day trading on Monday after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $165.80 and last traded at $163.90. 25,739,321 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 11% from the average session volume of 23,193,264 shares. The stock had previously closed at $157.27.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Micron Technology from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. KGI Securities upgraded shares of Micron Technology from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on Micron Technology from $200.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Micron Technology from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Arete Research raised Micron Technology to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $184.77.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra sold 13,798 shares of Micron Technology stock in a transaction on Friday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.20, for a total transaction of $2,238,035.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 325,148 shares in the company, valued at $52,739,005.60. The trade was a 4.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark J. Murphy sold 34,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.32, for a total transaction of $3,716,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 264,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,864,415.52. The trade was a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 76,308 shares of company stock worth $9,952,167. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Command Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Micron Technology by 225.0% during the second quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 221 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in Micron Technology during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in Micron Technology by 13,250.0% in the 2nd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 267 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. WealthCollab LLC grew its holdings in Micron Technology by 4,500.0% during the 2nd quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 276 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in shares of Micron Technology in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 80.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Micron Technology Stock Up 4.2%

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $128.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $108.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $183.42 billion, a PE ratio of 21.59, a PEG ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.47.

Micron Technology Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.115 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Micron Technology's dividend payout ratio is currently 6.06%.

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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