Empirical Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 53.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,819 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 5,482 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 1.3% of Empirical Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,389,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Monumental Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Microsoft in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Gleason Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 111.7% during the 1st quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 199 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PayPay Securities Corp bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.20% of the company’s stock.
Insider Activity at Microsoft
In related news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 30,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.09, for a total transaction of $9,182,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 30,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Monday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.09, for a total transaction of $9,182,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Teri List sold 1,250 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Friday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $334.77, for a total value of $418,462.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,588.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 51,331 shares of company stock valued at $15,867,278. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Stock Performance
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $52.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $51.01 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 38.98% and a net margin of 33.25%. Microsoft’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 9.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 17th will be given a $0.68 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 16th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.47%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research firms have commented on MSFT. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Microsoft from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Microsoft from $212.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Microsoft from $365.00 to $380.00 in a report on Thursday, June 22nd. TD Cowen raised their price target on Microsoft from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Microsoft from $332.00 to $340.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirty-one have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $335.40.
About Microsoft
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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