Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Aries Wealth Management’s 2nd Largest Position

Posted by Defense World Staff on Oct 1st, 2023

Aries Wealth Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 1.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,820 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 377 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 4.6% of Aries Wealth Management’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Aries Wealth Management’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $11,858,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Monumental Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Gleason Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 111.7% in the 1st quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 199 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 157.0% in the 1st quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 203 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. MayTech Global Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $83,000. Finally, Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 57.5% in the 3rd quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 411 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. 69.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.20, for a total transaction of $16,860,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 588,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,301,924.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.20, for a total transaction of $16,860,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 588,084 shares in the company, valued at $198,301,924.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.43, for a total value of $12,557,192.62. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 800,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $262,963,391.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 115,049 shares of company stock worth $38,195,619. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $315.75 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $327.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $318.08. The stock has a market cap of $2.35 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.77. Microsoft Co. has a one year low of $213.43 and a one year high of $366.78.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The software giant reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $56.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.49 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 34.15%. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.23 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 30.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MSFT. Bank of America boosted their target price on Microsoft from $340.00 to $405.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 26th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $420.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, September 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $385.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on Microsoft from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.03.

View Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft

About Microsoft

(Free Report)

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.