Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Holdings Lessened by AMI Asset Management Corp

AMI Asset Management Corp reduced its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 256,563 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 10,714 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 5.6% of AMI Asset Management Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. AMI Asset Management Corp's holdings in Microsoft were worth $96,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 684,071,705 shares of the software giant's stock worth $288,336,224,000 after acquiring an additional 10,431,988 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 168,128,024 shares of the software giant's stock worth $70,720,874,000 after purchasing an additional 3,103,212 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $44,343,058,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock worth $35,316,535,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 59,961,337 shares of the software giant's stock worth $25,273,704,000 after buying an additional 5,370,546 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT traded down $4.10 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $520.84. 16,045,615 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 19,850,260. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $495.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $437.64. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $344.79 and a 52 week high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.06.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.35 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $76.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $73.79 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 32.44%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.95 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 24.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSFT has been the subject of a number of research reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $580.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Mizuho raised their price objective on Microsoft from $540.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $530.00 to $582.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $609.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.77, for a total transaction of $9,756,055.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 134,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $61,208,127.76. The trade was a 13.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total transaction of $1,389,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 43,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,339,590. The trade was a 6.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 54,743 shares of company stock worth $24,921,913. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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.