KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Buys New Position in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 178,280 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,224,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AXQ Capital LP increased its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 68.4% during the fourth quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 4,616 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 1,875 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Semanteon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter valued at $1,435,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 17,689 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,014,000 after buying an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth $209,000. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,724 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.88, for a total transaction of $226,717.12. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,025,599.36. This trade represents a 10.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Microchip Technology Stock Performance

MCHP stock opened at $53.89 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $28.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 96.23 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 2.25. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.49. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 52 week low of $49.92 and a 52 week high of $100.57.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.15). Microchip Technology had a net margin of 6.49% and a return on equity of 12.62%. Research analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 325.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MCHP. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Microchip Technology from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Microchip Technology from $71.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price (down from $85.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America cut shares of Microchip Technology from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $65.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Microchip Technology from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.37.

Microchip Technology Company Profile

Microchip Technology Incorporated engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of smart, connected, and secure embedded control solutions in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company offers general purpose 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit mixed-signal microcontrollers; 32-bit embedded mixed-signal microprocessors; and specialized microcontrollers for automotive, industrial, computing, communications, lighting, power supplies, motor control, human machine interface, security, wired connectivity, and wireless connectivity applications.