First Financial Bank Trust Division Sells 6,680 Shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

First Financial Bank Trust Division cut its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 65,870 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 6,680 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 2.4% of First Financial Bank Trust Division's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. First Financial Bank Trust Division's holdings in Microsoft were worth $24,727,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $62,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 476,999 shares in the company, valued at $207,995,413.95. This trade represents a 13.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total transaction of $1,389,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,339,590. This trade represents a 6.39% 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 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $486.00 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $487.75. The company has a market cap of $3.61 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $439.81 and a 200-day moving average of $420.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.79% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The business had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.94 EPS. Microsoft's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 25.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on MSFT shares. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on Microsoft from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $565.00 price target (up previously from $515.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $515.68.

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.

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