Howard Capital Management Inc. Buys 455 Shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,393 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Microchip Technology were worth $883,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Microchip Technology by 39.3% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 11,093,007 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $636,184,000 after buying an additional 3,131,807 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 30.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,347,643 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $264,430,000 after acquiring an additional 776,408 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 0.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,026,946 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $243,034,000 after purchasing an additional 25,872 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 9,901.6% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,857,654 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $163,886,000 after purchasing an additional 2,829,082 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 20.1% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,751,987 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $220,957,000 after purchasing an additional 460,697 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.51% of the company’s stock.

Microchip Technology Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MCHP opened at $61.07 on Monday. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $50.21 and a fifty-two week high of $100.57. The company’s 50-day moving average is $56.70 and its 200 day moving average is $68.00. 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 company has a market capitalization of $32.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 109.05 and a beta of 1.50.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 1.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio is currently 325.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Microchip Technology from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Microchip Technology from $85.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Susquehanna cut their price target on Microchip Technology from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Microchip Technology from $92.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price (down previously from $95.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.11.

About Microchip Technology

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.