Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Rating) by 23.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 159,812 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 48,278 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 1.9% of Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $38,326,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Optas LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Optas LLC now owns 25,001 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $5,996,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 44,418 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $10,652,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Quilter Plc grew its holdings in Microsoft by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 844,299 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $202,480,000 after acquiring an additional 11,563 shares in the last quarter. Seascape Capital Management grew its holdings in Microsoft by 41.9% during the 3rd quarter. Seascape Capital Management now owns 2,908 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $677,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SeaTown Holdings Pte. Ltd. grew its holdings in Microsoft by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. SeaTown Holdings Pte. Ltd. now owns 200,299 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $48,036,000 after acquiring an additional 6,000 shares in the last quarter. 69.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Microsoft Stock Up 0.7 %
Microsoft stock opened at $334.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.49 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 1.91. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $308.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $272.49. Microsoft Co. has a twelve month low of $213.43 and a twelve month high of $338.56.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 17th will be paid a $0.68 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 16th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.47%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several brokerages have weighed in on MSFT. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $310.00 to $336.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Microsoft from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $310.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Monday, April 24th. Credit Suisse Group boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $350.00 to $420.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 31st. Finally, Moffett Nathanson boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $263.00 to $306.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and thirty-two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $331.74.
Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft
In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.09, for a total value of $9,182,700.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 117,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,952,107.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.09, for a total value of $9,182,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 117,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,952,107.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Christopher C. Capossela sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.70, for a total transaction of $1,543,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 105,206 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,477,092.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 51,331 shares of company stock worth $15,867,278. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Microsoft Profile
Microsoft Corporation develops, licenses, and supports software, services, devices, and solutions worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Productivity and Business Processes, Intelligent Cloud, and More Personal Computing. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers Office, Exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, Office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft Viva, and Skype for Business; Skype, Outlook.com, OneDrive, and LinkedIn; and Dynamics 365, a set of cloud-based and on-premises business solutions for organizations and enterprise divisions.
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