Ashburton Jersey Ltd increased its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 0.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,226 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 11.8% of Ashburton Jersey Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Ashburton Jersey Ltd’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $24,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Monumental Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Microsoft during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Gleason Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 111.7% during the first quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 199 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Syverson Strege & Co boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 157.0% during the first quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 203 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. MayTech Global Investments LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at about $83,000. Finally, Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 57.5% during the third quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 411 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. 69.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research analysts have recently commented on MSFT shares. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $320.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 24th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $330.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 19th. Guggenheim raised shares of Microsoft from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $376.34.
Insider Transactions at Microsoft
In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of Microsoft 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 transaction, 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 SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of Microsoft 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 transaction, 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 SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 800,668 shares in the company, valued at $262,963,391.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 115,049 shares of company stock valued at $38,195,619 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Microsoft Price Performance
MSFT opened at $332.42 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $324.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $320.83. 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 52 week low of $213.43 and a 52 week high of $366.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.91.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The software giant reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $56.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.49 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 34.15% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.23 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Increases Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.07%.
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.
Read More
- Five stocks we like better than Microsoft
- How to Invest in Cannabis, Step by Step
- The Most Explosive EV Brand Out There, Buffett & Dalio Certified
- Investing In Automotive Stocks
- Activision-Blizzard Deal Racing to Friday the 13th Finish Line
- The Dividend Kings With Highest Yield
- 3 Ways To Invest In Coffee, Other Than Drinking It
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
