Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by Certuity LLC

Key Points

• Certuity LLC increased its Microsoft stake by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, buying 2,761 more shares and bringing its total holding to 55,659 shares worth about $26.9 million.
• Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting earnings of $4.27 per share and revenue of $82.89 billion, both above analyst forecasts, with revenue up 18.3% year over year.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish on MSFT, with 39 analysts rating it a Buy and a consensus “Moderate Buy” target price of $560.88, even as some recent price targets were trimmed.

Certuity LLC lifted its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,659 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 2,761 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 1.2% of Certuity LLC's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Certuity LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $26,918,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,465,000. Rogco LP grew its position in Microsoft by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Rogco LP now owns 10,847 shares of the software giant's stock worth $5,246,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the period. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,757,000. R Squared Ltd increased its stake in Microsoft by 56.6% during the fourth quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 4,126 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,995,000 after acquiring an additional 1,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Microsoft by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,027,311 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $980,448,000 after purchasing an additional 60,561 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Thirty-nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $560.88.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT opened at $418.57 on Tuesday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $399.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $436.24. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $356.28 and a 12-month high of $555.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.91, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.10.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 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 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.67%.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square disclosed a large new Microsoft stake, signaling strong confidence in MSFT’s long-term AI and cloud growth prospects. Billionaire Bill Ackman Just Made a Massive Bet on Microsoft. Here's Why.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators continue to argue Microsoft remains a strong long-term compounder, with some saying the stock looks cheaper than it has in years on a cash-flow basis. Is Microsoft Stock a Steal Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say Microsoft’s move away from an overly dependent OpenAI relationship could be beneficial over time because customers increasingly want access to multiple AI models rather than one exclusive partner. Why Microsoft's Split With OpenAI May Be Great for the Stock in the Long Run

Microsoft Company 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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