Sentry Investment Management LLC Sells 307 Shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) by 9.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,854 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 307 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Microchip Technology were worth $257,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cullen Investment Group LTD. bought a new position in shares of Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth $263,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 2,457,152 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $221,586,000 after purchasing an additional 11,163 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth $6,827,000. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter worth $416,000. Finally, Simplicity Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microchip Technology by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 17,136 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,545,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microchip Technology Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ MCHP opened at $85.93 on Wednesday. Microchip Technology Incorporated has a 52 week low of $68.75 and a 52 week high of $94.30. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a market cap of $46.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.65.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The semiconductor company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. Microchip Technology had a return on equity of 45.59% and a net margin of 27.59%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.48 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology Incorporated will post 4.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This is an increase from Microchip Technology’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.06%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 1,970 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.90, for a total transaction of $165,283.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,759,722.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 1,970 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.90, for a total transaction of $165,283.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,759,722.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Karlton D. Johnson sold 370 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.00, for a total value of $31,080.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,789 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $150,276. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MCHP shares. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Microchip Technology in a report on Monday, April 8th. Wolfe Research raised Microchip Technology from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. StockNews.com lowered Microchip Technology from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 29th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Microchip Technology from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on Microchip Technology from $97.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.25.

About Microchip Technology

Microchip Technology Incorporated develops, manufactures, and sells 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 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.