Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 2.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 192,486 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,320 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 4.3% of Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $65,549,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Monumental Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Gleason Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 111.7% in the first quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 199 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 157.0% in the first quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 203 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. MayTech Global Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth about $83,000. Finally, Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 57.5% in the third quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 411 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Microsoft from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 21st. Bank of America raised their price objective on Microsoft from $340.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Microsoft from $320.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Microsoft from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Microsoft from $398.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $376.34.
Microsoft Trading Up 1.8 %
Shares of MSFT opened at $318.96 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $325.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $319.01. Microsoft Co. has a 12-month low of $213.43 and a 12-month high of $366.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.37 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.91.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The software giant reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.14. Microsoft had a net margin of 34.15% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The business had revenue of $56.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.23 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 16th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.07%.
Insider Activity at Microsoft
In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.20, for a total value of $16,860,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly 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 at this hyperlink. In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $262,963,391.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 588,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,301,924.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 115,049 shares of company stock worth $38,195,619. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
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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