Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Stiles Financial Services Inc’s 7th Largest Position

Posted by Defense World Staff on Oct 22nd, 2023

Stiles Financial Services Inc decreased its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 2.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,050 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 274 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 2.2% of Stiles Financial Services Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Stiles Financial Services Inc’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Monumental Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Gleason Group Inc. grew its stake in Microsoft by 111.7% in the 1st 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 grew its stake in Microsoft by 157.0% in the 1st 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. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 39.0% in the 2nd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 303 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Alapocas Investment Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 1st quarter valued at $97,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.20% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $326.67 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a one year low of $213.43 and a one year high of $366.78. The company has a market cap of $2.43 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.77. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $323.16.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $56.19 billion during 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 for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.23 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 10.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 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 completion of 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 800,668 shares in the company, valued at $262,963,391.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 owns 588,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $198,301,924.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 115,049 shares of company stock valued at $38,195,619 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MSFT. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 2nd. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Microsoft from $340.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Microsoft from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.11.

Check Out Our Latest Report on MSFT

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.