AmeriServ Wealth Advisors Invests $1.44 Million in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

AmeriServ Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 3,404 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $1,435,000. Microsoft comprises about 0.8% of AmeriServ Wealth Advisors' portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. American Trust Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. American Trust Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,837 shares of the software giant's stock worth $7,518,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Anatole Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,374,000. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 242,057 shares of the software giant's stock worth $102,027,000 after purchasing an additional 1,407 shares in the last quarter. Apex Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,297,000. Finally, Arrowroot Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 108.4% during the 4th quarter. Arrowroot Family Office LLC now owns 5,564 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,345,000 after purchasing an additional 2,894 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT traded down $3.91 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $474.96. 16,804,288 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,539,207. The firm's fifty day moving average is $428.05 and its 200 day moving average is $418.58. The company has a market cap of $3.53 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Microsoft Co. has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $480.42.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $70.07 billion for 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%. Microsoft's revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.94 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Westpark Capital reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group dropped their price target on Microsoft from $510.00 to $480.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Microsoft from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $515.68.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the firm's 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 directly owns 476,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,995,413.95. This trade represents a 13.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 16,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $458.18, for a total value of $7,330,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 98,010 shares in the company, valued at $44,906,221.80. This trade represents a 14.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 135,743 shares of company stock valued at $60,224,683 over the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Microsoft

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.