Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) Trading Up 1.1% – Here’s Why

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU)’s share price shot up 1.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $97.13 and last traded at $96.07. 5,345,631 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 26,757,629 shares. The stock had previously closed at $95.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America lowered shares of Micron Technology from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $125.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Micron Technology from $145.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on Micron Technology from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Micron Technology from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Micron Technology has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.24.

Micron Technology Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $107.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 141.55 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.64. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $98.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.89.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.60 by $0.19. Micron Technology had a net margin of 3.10% and a return on equity of 1.58%. The business had revenue of $8.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.95) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 84.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Micron Technology Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.115 per share. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 30th. Micron Technology’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.65%.

Insider Transactions at Micron Technology

In other news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.21, for a total transaction of $416,676.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 181,223 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,442,011.83. This represents a 2.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Micron Technology

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Stonebrook Private Inc. lifted its position in Micron Technology by 4.2% during the third quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 2,454 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Micron Technology by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 4,063 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in shares of Micron Technology by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 821 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc grew its stake in Micron Technology by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 4,382 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in Micron Technology by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,357 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. 80.84% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Micron Technology

Micron Technology, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, and sells memory and storage products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Compute and Networking Business Unit, Mobile Business Unit, Embedded Business Unit, and Storage Business Unit. It provides memory and storage technologies comprising dynamic random access memory semiconductor devices with low latency that provide high-speed data retrieval; non-volatile and re-writeable semiconductor storage devices; and non-volatile re-writable semiconductor memory devices that provide fast read speeds under the Micron and Crucial brands, as well as through private labels.