Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Purchased by Barings LLC

Barings LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,846 shares of the software giant's stock after buying an additional 735 shares during the period. Barings LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $5,415,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management increased its holdings in Microsoft by 144.4% during the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth approximately $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.0%

MSFT traded up $0.19 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $453.13. 21,913,513 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 21,510,806. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $344.79 and a 52 week high of $468.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $392.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $412.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.94 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Microsoft's payout ratio is 25.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Securities boosted their price target on Microsoft from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Microsoft from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised Microsoft from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $509.16.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.17, for a total transaction of $2,599,020.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 471,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $204,038,664.12. This represents a 1.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company 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.