MetLife Investment Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU)

MetLife Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 288,218 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock after selling 7,064 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Micron Technology were worth $29,891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in Micron Technology during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Micron Technology during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Micron Technology by 128.6% during the second quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 256 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Micron Technology by 57.2% in the second quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 272 shares of the semiconductor manufacturer’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Davis Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Micron Technology in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.84% of the company’s stock.

Micron Technology Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of MU opened at $101.80 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $103.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.90. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $112.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 149.71 and a beta of 1.18. Micron Technology, Inc. has a one year low of $72.93 and a one year high of $157.54.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The semiconductor manufacturer reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $7.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.65 billion. Micron Technology had a net margin of 3.10% and a return on equity of 1.58%. The business’s revenue was up 93.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted ($1.21) EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Micron Technology, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Micron Technology Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 7th were issued a $0.115 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 7th. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. Micron Technology’s payout ratio is 67.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on MU shares. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Micron Technology from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Micron Technology from $172.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Micron Technology from $190.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. BNP Paribas cut Micron Technology from an “outperform” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $140.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Micron Technology from $100.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and twenty-six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Micron Technology currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.04.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP April S. Arnzen sold 4,890 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $552,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 135,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,348,790. This trade represents a 3.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

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.