Chung Wu Investment Group LLC Takes Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 17,762 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $7,487,000. Microsoft makes up approximately 7.5% of Chung Wu Investment Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Avondale Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 144.4% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of MSFT traded up $3.80 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $452.94. 19,864,490 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,486,259. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $3.37 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99. The stock's 50-day moving average is $391.20 and its 200-day moving average is $411.86. Microsoft Co. has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $468.35.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total value of $32,703,750.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 476,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,995,413.95. This trade represents a 13.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Microsoft from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $502.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $507.77.

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.