Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stake Reduced by Private Client Services LLC

Private Client Services LLC cut its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 24.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,943 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,565 shares during the quarter. Private Client Services LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $44,343,058,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 40,290.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 46,695,303 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $17,528,950,000 after acquiring an additional 46,579,693 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 34,643.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 16,837,278 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $7,096,913,000 after acquiring an additional 16,788,816 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $35,316,535,000 after buying an additional 11,600,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 684,071,705 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $288,336,224,000 after buying an additional 10,431,988 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $492.27 on Thursday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $344.79 and a 52 week high of $494.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.66 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.04, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock's fifty day moving average is $444.31 and its 200-day moving average is $421.40.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.74% and a net margin of 35.79%. The company had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.54 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.94 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm 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 $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.66%.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 134,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,208,127.76. This trade represents a 13.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total value of $32,703,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 476,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,995,413.95. This trade represents a 13.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 135,743 shares of company stock worth $60,224,683. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Microsoft from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $525.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $519.43.

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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