Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP)

Microchip Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCHP) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors bought 74,216 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 704% compared to the typical volume of 9,230 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCHP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Microchip Technology from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. B. Riley Financial upped their price target on Microchip Technology from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Microchip Technology in a research note on Friday, February 6th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Microchip Technology from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $90.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Argus raised shares of Microchip Technology to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microchip Technology has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Steve Sanghi sold 98,814 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.55, for a total value of $7,959,467.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 9,922,319 shares in the company, valued at $799,242,795.45. This represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO James Eric Bjornholt sold 4,292 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total value of $216,273.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,516,184.71. This trade represents a 12.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 121,615 shares of company stock valued at $9,641,654. Corporate insiders own 1.94% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microchip Technology

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Winnow Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microchip Technology during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Microchip Technology during the third quarter worth $28,000. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in Microchip Technology in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microchip Technology in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 219.3% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 479 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. 91.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microchip Technology Trading Up 0.7%

MCHP opened at $77.73 on Friday. Microchip Technology has a 1-year low of $34.13 and a 1-year high of $83.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $72.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.06 billion, a PE ratio of -268.03, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. Microchip Technology had a negative net margin of 1.57% and a positive return on equity of 7.16%. Microchip Technology’s revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.20 earnings per share. Microchip Technology has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.480-0.520 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology will post 1.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Microchip Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -627.59%.

Microchip Technology Company Profile

Microchip Technology Inc is a semiconductor company headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, that designs, develops and supplies a broad portfolio of embedded control and analog semiconductors. Its product lineup centers on microcontrollers (including the well-known PIC family), digital signal controllers and associated development tools and software, along with a range of mixed-signal and analog devices, nonvolatile memory, power management, timing, interface, wireless and security products. The company also provides integrated hardware and software solutions intended to simplify embedded design and accelerate time to market for OEMs and contract manufacturers.

Microchip’s products are used across a wide range of end markets, including automotive, industrial automation, consumer electronics, communications, aerospace and defense, and Internet of Things (IoT) applications.