Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Position Lifted by Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd

Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 814,594 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 28,543 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 6.3% of Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd's holdings in Microsoft were worth $305,790,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Newton One Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 50.0% during the 1st 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 last quarter. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $522.04 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $496.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $438.29. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.88 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on MSFT. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on Microsoft from $581.00 to $639.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Microsoft from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. TD Securities lifted their target price on Microsoft from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Mizuho lifted their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Microsoft from $515.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $609.86.

About Microsoft

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.

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