Weaver Consulting Group cut its stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 4.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,576 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 741 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 2.3% of Weaver Consulting Group’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Weaver Consulting Group’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $5,304,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.
A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 112,158.6% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 150,187,424 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $36,017,948,000 after buying an additional 150,053,637 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $20,700,525,000. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew 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 valued at $66,852,000 after buying an additional 20,553,188 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC grew 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 valued at $57,477,000 after buying an additional 16,515,452 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 14.0% in 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. 69.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research firms have weighed in on MSFT. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $335.00 to $415.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 6th. HSBC began coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 15th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $347.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $390.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Finally, Fundamental Research set a $298.10 price target on shares of Microsoft and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $376.34.
Microsoft Stock Down 0.4 %
Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $331.16 on Friday. 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 $2.46 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.18, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $324.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $320.90. 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 (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $56.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.49 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 38.70% and a net margin of 34.15%. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 16th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 28.07%.
Insider Transactions at Microsoft
In related news, 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 transaction, the insider now 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 is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $198,301,924.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 26,815 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.37, for a total value of $8,778,426.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 198,373 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,941,369.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 115,049 shares of company stock valued at $38,195,619. Company 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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