Access Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,976 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 1.7% of Access Financial Services Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Access Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,120,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Fosun International Ltd raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.3% in the first quarter. Fosun International Ltd now owns 6,633 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,490,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,866,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $443,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,540 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,335,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel now owns 3,286 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,385,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Transactions at Microsoft
In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $433.17, for a total value of $2,599,020.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 471,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $204,038,664.12. This trade represents a 1.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total transaction of $1,389,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,339,590. This represents a 6.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 135,743 shares of company stock valued at $60,224,683 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Microsoft Stock Down 0.3%
Microsoft stock traded down $1.43 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $497.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,699,094 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,640,707. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $344.79 and a 52-week high of $500.76. The company has a market cap of $3.70 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm's 50 day moving average is $461.41 and its 200 day moving average is $423.48.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.79% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.94 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.66%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Microsoft from $565.00 to $585.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $525.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $524.71.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Microsoft
Microsoft Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
See Also

Before you consider Microsoft, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Microsoft wasn't on the list.
While Microsoft currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Wondering what the next stocks will be that hit it big, with solid fundamentals? Enter your email address to see which stocks MarketBeat analysts could become the next blockbuster growth stocks.
Get This Free Report