Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by First Dallas Securities Inc.

First Dallas Securities Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 34.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,672 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 5,650 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.5% of First Dallas Securities Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. First Dallas Securities Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,950,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is pushing sales teams to sell its AI offerings as a more secure and lower-cost alternative to OpenAI and Anthropic, highlighting its ability to monetize enterprise demand and defend its AI ecosystem. Microsoft Coaches Sales Staff to Challenge OpenAI and Anthropic on Costs and Security
• Positive Sentiment: 3M announced a strategic partnership with Microsoft tied to Azure data centers and enterprise transformation, which adds another validation point for Microsoft’s cloud and AI infrastructure strategy. 3M and Microsoft announce strategic partnership to advance AI data center infrastructure and enterprise transformation
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is overhauling its cybersecurity business to capture more spending from AI-driven threats, which could open a new growth lane as customers increase security budgets. Microsoft (MSFT) Overhauls Cybersecurity Business to Cash In on AI Threats
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft launched a $2.5 billion initiative to help large customers deploy AI systems around their own data and workflows, reinforcing its enterprise AI moat. How Microsoft (MSFT) Is Deepening Its Enterprise AI Moat With a $2.5 Billion Customer Deployment Initiative

Microsoft Price Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $395.63 on Thursday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $401.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $412.04. The company has a market capitalization of $2.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.13. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts' expectations of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.46 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.67%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MSFT. President Capital raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. HSBC decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Microsoft to a "buy" rating and set a $485.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Forty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $557.96.

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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