Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Holdings Raised by Suncoast Equity Management

Suncoast Equity Management grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 177,974 shares of the software giant's stock after buying an additional 2,311 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 7.6% of Suncoast Equity Management's portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Suncoast Equity Management's holdings in Microsoft were worth $66,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Newton One Investments LLC lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock traded down $9.47 on Friday, reaching $524.03. 13,043,612 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 22,325,803. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $344.79 and a 52 week high of $555.45. The company has a 50 day moving average of $488.46 and a 200 day moving average of $434.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.89 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.41, a PEG ratio of 2.33 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.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.35 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $76.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $73.79 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 33.49%. Microsoft's revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.95 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 13,243 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.01, for a total value of $5,985,968.43. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 43,100 shares in the company, valued at $19,481,631. This represents a 23.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.77, for a total transaction of $9,756,055.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 134,888 shares in the company, valued at $61,208,127.76. This represents a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 60,743 shares of company stock worth $27,520,933 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on MSFT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $585.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $581.00 to $639.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Microsoft from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $630.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $609.86.

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.