Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Position Lessened by Forum Financial Management LP

Posted by Defense World Staff on Nov 1st, 2023

Forum Financial Management LP lowered its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 3.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 46,941 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,626 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 0.4% of Forum Financial Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Forum Financial Management LP’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $15,985,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Good Life Advisors LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 54,021 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $18,396,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Carr Financial Group Corp boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 4.0% during the second quarter. Carr Financial Group Corp now owns 10,761 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $3,665,000 after acquiring an additional 417 shares during the period. Planning Center Inc. grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 24.4% in the second quarter. Planning Center Inc. now owns 4,849 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 6.6% in the first quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 1,518,749 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $437,855,000 after purchasing an additional 94,563 shares during the period. Finally, Sweet Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Sweet Financial Partners LLC now owns 13,301 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $4,529,000 after purchasing an additional 961 shares during the last quarter. 69.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $338.11 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.51 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.73, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Microsoft Co. has a 1 year low of $213.43 and a 1 year high of $366.78. The company’s 50-day moving average is $326.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $325.31.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 24th. The software giant reported $2.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.34. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.31% and a return on equity of 38.79%. The business had revenue of $56.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.35 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 26.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the 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 owns 800,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $262,963,391.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,963,391.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 26,815 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.37, for a total value of $8,778,426.55. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 198,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,941,369.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on MSFT. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $410.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $398.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $385.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, September 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $340.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $430.00 to $432.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $384.34.

Read Our Latest Report on Microsoft

Microsoft 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.