Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Shares Down 2.9% – Here’s Why

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU)’s stock price dropped 2.9% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $100.31 and last traded at $101.48. Approximately 5,407,805 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 21,439,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $104.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MU has been the subject of a number of research reports. BNP Paribas cut Micron Technology from an “outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $67.00 in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Micron Technology from $190.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. China Renaissance started coverage on Micron Technology in a research note on Monday, October 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $148.00 target price on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on shares of Micron Technology from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $100.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and twenty-six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Micron Technology has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $143.04.

Micron Technology Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $103.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.80. The stock has a market cap of $108.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 144.41 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.64, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $7.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.65 billion. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 1.58% and a net margin of 3.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 93.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($1.21) earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Micron Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 7th were issued a dividend of $0.115 per share. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 7th. Micron Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Micron Technology news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $552,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 135,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,348,790. The trade was a 3.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Micron Technology

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atria Investments Inc raised its position in Micron Technology by 0.3% in the first quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 27,749 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $3,269,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC raised its holdings in Micron Technology by 39.8% in the 2nd quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 330 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Micron Technology by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,625 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $1,003,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Stonebrook Private Inc. grew its holdings in Micron Technology by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 2,454 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $255,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC grew its holdings in Micron Technology by 57.2% during the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 272 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. 80.84% of the stock is owned by 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.