Diversified Enterprises LLC Purchases 11,639 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Diversified Enterprises LLC increased its Microsoft stake by 46.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 11,639 additional shares and lifting its total holdings to 36,572 shares valued at about $17.7 million.
• Microsoft reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.27 versus $4.06 expected and revenue of $82.89 billion, up 18.3% year over year.
• The stock is supported by bullish Wall Street sentiment, with analysts maintaining a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $560.88, even as the shares were down 1.4% in recent trading.

Diversified Enterprises LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 46.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,572 shares of the software giant's stock after buying an additional 11,639 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.1% of Diversified Enterprises LLC's holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. Diversified Enterprises LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $17,687,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 691,386,214 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $259,539,471,000 after buying an additional 7,314,509 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 299,196,519 shares of the software giant's stock worth $148,823,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,166,275 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 179,001,751 shares of the software giant's stock worth $88,714,256,000 after purchasing an additional 3,532,054 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth $50,493,678,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock worth $35,316,535,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,470 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.4%

MSFT opened at $417.42 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $398.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $439.04. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $356.28 and a 52 week high of $555.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The business had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. The business's revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is 21.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MSFT shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on Microsoft from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Microsoft from $615.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Phillip Securities upgraded Microsoft to a "buy" rating and set a $485.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Thirty-nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $560.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s Azure cloud business is still growing strongly, with recent commentary pointing to about 40% growth, reinforcing the company’s AI and cloud leadership thesis. 9 Best Cloud Stocks to Buy as Azure Growth Hits 40%
• Positive Sentiment: The jury defeat for Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI removed a legal overhang around Microsoft’s AI partner ecosystem and was viewed as a bullish development for MSFT’s broader AI strategy. Musk loses blockbuster OpenAI suit as jury says too late
• Positive Sentiment: New product news around Surface devices for business and AI workloads suggests Microsoft is still pushing enterprise hardware and AI adoption across its ecosystem. Microsoft launches Surface Pro 12 and Surface Laptop 8 with Intel chips
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft also unveiled enterprise Surface models powered by Intel Core Ultra chips, which is a product refresh but not likely a major near-term stock catalyst on its own. Microsoft (MSFT) Unveils Enterprise Surface Lineup Powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3
• Neutral Sentiment: LinkedIn said it will lay off more than 600 employees, a cost-cutting move that may help margins but also signals restructuring inside Microsoft’s professional networking unit. Panic in California as LinkedIn announces hundreds of layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors are focusing on concerns about mixed Xbox messaging, which may be weighing on sentiment around Microsoft’s gaming segment. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Slips on Mixed Xbox Messaging
• Negative Sentiment: Another report highlighted a Windows drivers issue that could hurt battery life on Windows 11 laptops, adding a small but negative product-quality overhang. “Blind Spot” in Windows Drivers Leads to Sub-Par Battery Life, Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Slips
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by EVP Amy Coleman, while modest, can also dampen sentiment when the stock is already under pressure. Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT EVP Amy Coleman Sells 1,262 Shares

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft's product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

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