Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stake Decreased by United Community Bank

Key Points

• United Community Bank trimmed its Microsoft position by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 1,532 shares and leaving it with 18,425 shares worth about $8.9 million. Microsoft remained the bank’s fifth-largest holding and accounted for roughly 3.4% of its portfolio.
• Microsoft’s latest earnings beat expectations, with quarterly EPS of $4.27 versus estimates of $4.06 and revenue of $82.89 billion, up 18.3% year over year. The company also posted strong profitability, including a 31.94% return on equity and a 39.34% net margin.
• The company continues to return cash to shareholders through a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, payable June 11, which works out to a 0.9% annual yield. Meanwhile, Wall Street remains broadly upbeat, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $560.88.

United Community Bank reduced its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 7.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,425 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,532 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 3.4% of United Community Bank's portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. United Community Bank's holdings in Microsoft were worth $8,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BLVD Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.6% during the third quarter. BLVD Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,169 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,641,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Magnolia Capital Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.3% during the third quarter. Magnolia Capital Management Ltd. now owns 6,509 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $3,371,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. ARK & TLK Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.0% during the third quarter. ARK & TLK Investments LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Rochester Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 2.9% during the third quarter. Rochester Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 700 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

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

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Microsoft News Summary

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Microsoft from a "market perform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $392.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Thirty-nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $560.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

About Microsoft

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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