Affinity Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,603 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises 0.9% of Affinity Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MSFT. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 112,158.6% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 150,187,424 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $36,017,948,000 after acquiring an additional 150,053,637 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $20,700,525,000. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 35,465.9% during the first quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 20,611,140 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $66,852,000 after purchasing an additional 20,553,188 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 29,789.2% during the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,570,893 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $57,477,000 after purchasing an additional 16,515,452 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Microsoft by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 119,417,954 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $28,638,815,000 after purchasing an additional 14,652,150 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.
Insider Activity
In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.20, for a total transaction of $16,860,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 588,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $198,301,924.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.43, for a total transaction of $12,557,192.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 800,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $262,963,391.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.20, for a total value of $16,860,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 588,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $198,301,924.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 115,049 shares of company stock valued at $38,195,619. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Microsoft Trading Up 0.7 %
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The software giant reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $56.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.49 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 34.15% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.23 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 15th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.96%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
MSFT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America increased their target price on Microsoft from $340.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating and set a $385.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on Microsoft from $336.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. Redburn Partners decreased their price target on Microsoft from $450.00 to $440.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 11th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on Microsoft from $350.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Friday, July 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.03.
View Our Latest Research Report on MSFT
About Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.
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