Benin Management CORP reduced its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 0.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,792 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 281 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 6.0% of Benin Management CORP’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Benin Management CORP’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $15,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Affiance Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.3% in the first quarter. Affiance Financial LLC now owns 10,362 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,988,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Henrickson Nauta Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.3% in the first quarter. Henrickson Nauta Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,898 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $835,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors Inc. now owns 3,746 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $898,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Providence First Trust Co lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Providence First Trust Co now owns 1,645 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.3% in the first quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 14,316 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $4,127,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 72.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Microsoft Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $338.37 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $336.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $294.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.52 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.92, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.92. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $213.43 and a 52 week high of $366.78.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 14th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 28.07%.
Insider Activity at Microsoft
In other Microsoft news, Director Teri List sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $292,588.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CMO Christopher C. Capossela sold 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.87, for a total transaction of $1,584,350.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 89,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,305,363.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Teri List sold 1,250 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $334.77, for a total transaction of $418,462.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 874 shares in the company, valued at $292,588.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 51,331 shares of company stock worth $15,867,278. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
MSFT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Moffett Nathanson upped their price target on Microsoft from $263.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th. Barclays increased their target price on Microsoft from $336.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Microsoft from $330.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 13th. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $320.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $345.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, July 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and thirty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.37.
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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