Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Sold by Montchanin Asset Management LLC

Montchanin Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 20,354 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,750 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 8.3% of Montchanin Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Montchanin Asset Management LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $8,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% in the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $480.24 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $436.07 and a 200-day moving average of $420.16. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $481.00. The company has a market cap of $3.57 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.03. 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 data on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.79% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The company had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.94 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders 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 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $550.00 to $595.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $565.00 target price (up previously from $515.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $515.68.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,339,590. This trade represents a 6.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 135,743 shares of company stock worth $60,224,683. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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