Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Shares Down 3.8% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) dropped 3.8% during trading on Thursday after Summit Insights downgraded the stock from a buy rating to a hold rating. The stock traded as low as $421.11 and last traded at $444.27. Approximately 73,777,816 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 98% from the average daily volume of 37,300,480 shares. The stock had previously closed at $461.73.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Micron Technology from $385.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Micron Technology from $360.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Micron Technology from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Phillip Securities upgraded Micron Technology to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Micron Technology in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Micron Technology presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $453.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Scott R. Allen sold 2,000 shares of Micron Technology stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.50, for a total value of $675,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 38,237 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,904,987.50. The trade was a 4.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Teyin M. Liu acquired 7,820 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $337.50 per share, with a total value of $2,639,250.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 25,910 shares in the company, valued at $8,744,625. The trade was a 43.23% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 23,200 shares of company stock valued at $7,821,723 and sold 73,623 shares valued at $27,307,408. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about Micron Technology

Here are the key news stories impacting Micron Technology this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blowout Q2 results and aggressive guidance — Micron posted ~$23.9B revenue and $12.20 EPS (well above consensus) and guided to even stronger next‑quarter revenue/margins, underpinning the AI memory story. Reuters: Micron beats quarterly revenue estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Heavy analyst upside: multiple firms hiked price targets (examples today include Barclays to $675, Cantor Fitzgerald to $700, KeyCorp to $600, Wells Fargo to $550, Mizuho to $530, BofA/UBS/Citigroup/Needham/Deutsche Bank raising targets). That broad upgrade flow supports further upside over the medium term. Benzinga: analyst price target coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend hike — Micron raised its quarterly dividend to $0.15 (≈30% increase), signaling confidence in cash flow and returning capital while scaling capacity. Seeking Alpha: Dividend raise
• Neutral Sentiment: Product/market momentum — Micron is ramping HBM4 and PCIe Gen6 SSDs for AI workloads; strong demand and sold‑out 2026 supply support pricing, but execution/timing matter. Yahoo: HBM4 and product ramps
• Negative Sentiment: Hefty capex guidance spooked investors — management said capital spending will step up “meaningfully” to meet demand, which increases near‑term cash burn and raised concerns about margin sustainability. That was a key reason for the intra‑day pullback. Reuters: spending plans eclipse earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Supply, power and execution risks flagged — analysts and commentators warn that factory/power constraints and the timing of capacity additions could limit upside and justify short‑term caution. Zacks: slips despite earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Profit‑taking and macro/geopolitical noise — MU rallied sharply YTD, so some pullback reflects rotation and risk‑off sentiment (plus concerns about a recent attack on Qatar energy infrastructure that briefly pressured markets). Invezz: Qatar attack risk

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Micron Technology

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MU. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Micron Technology in the 4th quarter worth $6,433,456,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Micron Technology by 411.9% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,627,022 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $606,873,000 after buying an additional 2,918,535 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 1,340.6% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,820,986 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $805,148,000 after buying an additional 2,625,169 shares during the period. Slate Path Capital LP acquired a new stake in Micron Technology during the second quarter worth about $317,751,000. Finally, Amundi grew its position in Micron Technology by 65.0% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,989,400 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $1,424,025,000 after buying an additional 1,965,319 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.84% of the company’s stock.

Micron Technology Stock Down 3.8%

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $398.74 and a 200-day moving average of $279.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.46 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $500.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.23 and a beta of 1.50.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 18th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $12.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.50 by $3.70. Micron Technology had a return on equity of 22.71% and a net margin of 28.15%.The company had revenue of $23.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.56 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 196.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Micron Technology Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 30th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. This is an increase from Micron Technology’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 30th. Micron Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.17%.

About Micron Technology

Micron Technology, Inc is a global semiconductor company that designs and manufactures memory and storage solutions. Its product portfolio includes dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), NAND flash memory, solid-state drives (SSDs), memory modules and embedded memory solutions for a wide range of computing and electronic devices. Micron supplies components used in data centers, enterprise and cloud infrastructure, client computing, mobile devices, automotive systems and industrial applications, and also markets consumer-facing products under the Crucial brand.

Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Boise, Idaho, Micron has grown into an international manufacturer with research, development and production facilities across multiple regions.