2,528,909 Shares in Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) Purchased by Meritage Group LP

Meritage Group LP bought a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 2,528,909 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $145,033,000. Microchip Technology accounts for approximately 3.5% of Meritage Group LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Microchip Technology during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 309.5% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 475 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microchip Technology Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of MCHP stock opened at $38.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 2.25 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The company has a market cap of $20.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 68.81 and a beta of 1.51. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 1 year low of $34.13 and a 1 year high of $100.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $50.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.61.

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

Microchip Technology Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders 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 yield of 4.72%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Microchip Technology’s payout ratio is 325.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microchip Technology

In other Microchip Technology news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,724 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.88, for a total transaction of $226,717.12. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,025,599.36. This trade represents a 10.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MCHP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Microchip Technology from $80.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Microchip Technology from $71.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down from $85.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.26.

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.