Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Purchased by Advisors Asset Management Inc.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 286,446 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 3,389 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 2.2% of Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $120,737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC boosted 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 last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management boosted its position in Microsoft by 144.4% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $141,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT traded up $1.32 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $458.68. 13,971,400 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 21,584,780. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $344.79 and a 52-week high of $468.35. The company's 50-day moving average price is $407.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $414.89. The company has a market cap of $3.41 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $70.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.94 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.66%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $433.17, for a total transaction of $2,599,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 471,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at $204,038,664.12. This trade represents a 1.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.77, for a total transaction of $9,756,055.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 134,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,208,127.76. This represents a 13.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 131,743 shares of company stock worth $58,375,673. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MSFT. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $525.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price target on Microsoft from $510.00 to $480.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays increased their price target on Microsoft from $430.00 to $494.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Microsoft from $472.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $513.13.

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.