Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Raises Stock Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 5.8% during the first quarter, now holding 344,667 shares, valued at approximately $129.39 million.
• Microsoft reported $3.65 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and revealing an 18.1% year-over-year revenue growth to $76.44 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.83 to be paid on September 11, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.7% with a payout ratio of 24.34%.

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 5.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 344,667 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 19,032 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 2.2% of Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $129,385,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Newton One Investments LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 66.7% in the first quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $62,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $506.69 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market capitalization of $3.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.15, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.04. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $508.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $447.85. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $344.79 and a twelve month high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.35 by $0.30. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.44% and a net margin of 36.15%.The business had revenue of $76.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $73.79 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.95 earnings per share. Microsoft's quarterly revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Microsoft has set its Q1 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is 24.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $490.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Microsoft from $525.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup raised their target price on Microsoft from $605.00 to $613.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Microsoft from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $612.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,850 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $527.32, for a total transaction of $2,557,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,624,012.52. This trade represents a 11.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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.

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