Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Position Cut by Zullo Investment Group Inc.

Posted by Defense World Staff on Oct 13th, 2023

Zullo Investment Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 0.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,605 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 196 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 6.3% of Zullo Investment Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Zullo Investment Group Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $11,103,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 134.8% during the second quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,242 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 713 shares during the period. Wallington Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% during the second quarter. Wallington Asset Management LLC now owns 91,233 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $31,068,000 after acquiring an additional 797 shares during the period. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 77.6% during the second quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 230,817 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $78,602,000 after acquiring an additional 100,821 shares during the period. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.4% during the second quarter. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC now owns 193,947 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $66,047,000 after acquiring an additional 2,687 shares during the period. Finally, 25 LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 13.2% during the second quarter. 25 LLC now owns 1,418 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $486,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $331.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.46 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.91. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $213.43 and a 52-week high of $366.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $324.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $320.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.14. Microsoft had a net margin of 34.15% and a return on equity of 38.70%. The firm had revenue of $56.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 EPS for the current 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 $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 0.91%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 26,815 shares of the 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 directly owns 198,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,941,369.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 800,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,963,391.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 26,815 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.37, for a total transaction of $8,778,426.55. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 198,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,941,369.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 115,049 shares of company stock valued at $38,195,619. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Redburn Partners dropped their target price on Microsoft from $450.00 to $440.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $345.00 to $400.00 in a report on Friday, July 14th. Fundamental Research set a $298.10 target price on Microsoft and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 9th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on Microsoft from $350.00 to $415.00 in a report on Friday, July 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $376.34.

Get Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft

Microsoft Company Profile

(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.