Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Holdings Lifted by Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc.

Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc. lifted its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,493 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 4.6% of Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Alan B Lancz & Associates Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Newton One Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 66.7% in the first quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 50.0% during the first quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the software giant's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $506.74 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $507.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $446.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $555.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.77 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.15, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.06.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.35 by $0.30. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 32.44%. The business had revenue of $76.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $73.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.95 earnings per share. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 18.1% on a year-over-year basis. Microsoft has set its Q1 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 24.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $527.32, for a total value of $2,557,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,624,012.52. The trade was a 11.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 8,850 shares of company stock valued at $4,406,512 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSFT has been the subject of several research reports. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $585.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $605.00 to $613.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $612.54.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.