Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP's 2nd Largest Position

Key Points

• L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP trimmed its Microsoft stake by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, but Microsoft still remains its 2nd-largest holding, worth about $56.7 million.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.27 beating estimates and revenue of $82.89 billion topping forecasts, while revenue rose 18.3% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, and analyst sentiment remains broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $560.88.

L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP lessened its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,289 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,795 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 6.3% of L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. L. Roy Papp & Associates LLP's holdings in Microsoft were worth $56,723,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of MSFT opened at $421.92 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $398.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $441.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market cap of $3.13 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $356.28 and a 52-week high of $555.45.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman revealed a new multi-billion-dollar stake in Microsoft (MSFT), saying the company looks attractively valued and highlighting Azure, Microsoft 365, and AI as key growth drivers. Reuters: Ackman's Pershing Square takes stake in Microsoft, citing 'compelling' valuation
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continued to argue that Microsoft’s AI infrastructure, Azure growth, and OpenAI exposure could support further upside, with some seeing the stock’s weaker recent performance as a buying opportunity. TipRanks: Microsoft Buy Rating Reiterated as AI and Cloud Momentum Builds
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft also announced a board addition, appointing former EY chief Carmine Di Sibio to its board of directors, which is a governance update but not an immediate operating catalyst. PR Newswire: Microsoft announces appointment of Carmine Di Sibio to board of directors
• Negative Sentiment: The UK opened an antitrust probe into Microsoft’s business software and cloud practices, creating a potential regulatory overhang for the stock. Reuters: UK opens antitrust probe into Microsoft's business software
• Negative Sentiment: LinkedIn, a Microsoft-owned unit, announced 5% workforce cuts, reinforcing that the company is still trimming costs even as it ramps AI spending. Reuters: LinkedIn to lay off 5% of workforce amid tech industry cuts

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on MSFT. Evercore cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $580.00 to $510.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $515.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Thirty-nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $560.88.

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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