Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Shares Down 1.3% - Here's Why

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) shares traded down 1.3% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $84.09 and last traded at $84.16. 18,630,350 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 15% from the average session volume of 21,944,355 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.31.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MU has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Micron Technology from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Micron Technology from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on Micron Technology from $150.00 to $130.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Micron Technology from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Micron Technology presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $135.24.

Micron Technology Price Performance

The company's fifty day moving average is $99.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $105.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.64. The firm has a market cap of $93.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 123.77 and a beta of 1.16.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.19. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 1.58% and a net margin of 3.10%. The firm had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.95) EPS. Micron Technology's revenue for the quarter was up 84.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 8.31 EPS for the current year.

Micron Technology Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be given a dividend of $0.115 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 30th. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Micron Technology's payout ratio is 13.26%.

Insider Activity at Micron Technology

In other Micron Technology news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of Micron Technology stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.21, for a total transaction of $416,676.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 181,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,442,011.83. The trade was a 2.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Micron Technology

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harmony Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 75.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harmony Asset Management LLC now owns 11,889 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $1,233,000 after purchasing an additional 5,120 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. grew its position in Micron Technology by 241.7% in the third quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. now owns 41,000 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $4,252,000 after buying an additional 29,000 shares during the last quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Micron Technology by 26.4% in the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 195,115 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $20,236,000 after buying an additional 40,802 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Micron Technology by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 48,226,710 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock valued at $5,001,592,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434,568 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 23.1% during the 3rd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 51,832 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer's stock worth $5,375,000 after acquiring an additional 9,735 shares in the last quarter. 80.84% of the stock is currently 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.