Nilsine Partners LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 0.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,741 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.8% of Nilsine Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Nilsine Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $12,171,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 112,158.6% during the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 150,053,637 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $20,700,525,000. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 35,465.9% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 29,789.2% in the 1st 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 raised its position in Microsoft by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 119,417,954 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $28,638,815,000 after buying an additional 14,652,150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of brokerages recently commented on MSFT. UBS Group upgraded shares of Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $345.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Friday, July 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on Microsoft from $336.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 19th. 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. HSBC started coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 15th. They set a “hold” rating and a $347.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $340.00 to $405.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $378.11.
Microsoft Stock Performance
Microsoft stock opened at $326.67 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $325.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $322.91. 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 $2.43 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.71, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 25th. The software giant reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $56.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.23 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 30.96%.
Insider Transactions at Microsoft
In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 50,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction 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 owns 588,084 shares in the company, valued at $198,301,924.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the company’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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 588,084 shares in the company, valued at $198,301,924.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 115,049 shares of company stock worth $38,195,619 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Profile
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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