SOL Capital Management CO Sells 9,851 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• SOL Capital Management cut its Microsoft stake by 46.1% in the first quarter, selling 9,851 shares and leaving it with 11,525 shares worth about $4.27 million.
• Microsoft reported a strong latest quarter, with EPS of $4.27 beating estimates and revenue of $82.89 billion, up 18.3% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, while analysts remain broadly positive with a Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $559.84.

SOL Capital Management CO trimmed its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 46.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,525 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 9,851 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 1.8% of SOL Capital Management CO's holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. SOL Capital Management CO's holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC now owns 431 shares of the software giant's stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC now owns 697 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $337,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.8% during the third quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,453,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Better Money Decisions LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.6% in the second quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,740,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $384.93 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $401.47 and its 200 day moving average is $412.68. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The company has a market capitalization of $2.86 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The business had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.46 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total transaction of $1,812,780.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. The trade was a 8.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators continue to view Microsoft as a high-quality AI and cloud name, with some arguing the stock looks cheaper after the recent decline.
• Positive Sentiment: Upcoming earnings later this month could provide a catalyst if Azure growth and AI-related demand remain strong.
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft remains a major beneficiary of AI infrastructure spending, but investors are waiting for clearer proof that those investments will translate into faster profit growth.
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft’s 4,800-job reduction and Xbox restructuring suggest ongoing cost pressure and restructuring challenges.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple securities class-action alerts tied to alleged AI/Copilot disclosure issues are adding legal and reputational risk.
• Negative Sentiment: Concerns about Microsoft’s OpenAI partnership and AI product execution are creating uncertainty around the company’s AI narrative.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $515.00 price objective (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $586.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $515.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, HSBC reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $559.84.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft's product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

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