Needham & Company LLC Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) Stock

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) had its price objective boosted by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC from $60.00 to $66.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the semiconductor company’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price objective points to a potential upside of 13.89% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on MCHP. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Microchip Technology from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target (down previously from $101.00) on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Microchip Technology from $92.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. KeyCorp decreased their target price on Microchip Technology from $70.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Microchip Technology from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microchip Technology currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $76.37.

Microchip Technology Stock Performance

NASDAQ MCHP opened at $57.95 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The company has a market capitalization of $31.17 billion, a PE ratio of 103.48 and a beta of 1.50. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $56.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.20. Microchip Technology has a twelve month low of $50.21 and a twelve month high of $100.57.

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

Insider Transactions at Microchip Technology

In other news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 3,724 shares of Microchip Technology stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.88, for a total value of $226,717.12. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microchip Technology

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 94,647 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $7,599,000 after buying an additional 1,138 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Microchip Technology by 2.6% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 206,360 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $16,569,000 after acquiring an additional 5,152 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microchip Technology by 48.5% in the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 768 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Microchip Technology in the third quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Finally, Fiduciary Family Office LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 17.9% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Family Office LLC now owns 10,810 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $868,000 after purchasing an additional 1,641 shares during the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.