Strategic Blueprint LLC Sells 13,285 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Strategic Blueprint LLC cut its Microsoft stake by 22.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 13,285 shares and leaving it with 46,368 shares worth about $22.4 million.
• Microsoft continues to attract strong analyst support, with 39 Buy ratings and seven Hold ratings; the stock’s average target price is $560.88, according to MarketBeat.
• The company also reported solid results, beating quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, while recently announcing a $0.91 quarterly dividend payable June 11 for a 0.9% yield.

Strategic Blueprint LLC lessened its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 22.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,368 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 13,285 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 1.3% of Strategic Blueprint LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Strategic Blueprint LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $22,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. IRON Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 23.2% during the third quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant's stock worth $3,372,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225 shares in the last quarter. PMG Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the third quarter worth $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.3% during the third quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock worth $36,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% during the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 949,901 shares of the software giant's stock worth $493,860,000 after acquiring an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant's stock worth $6,041,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Barclays reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $641.00 to $646.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Thirty-nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $560.88.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $418.57 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $356.28 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $399.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $436.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.11 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.91, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.10. 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 announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The business had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.67%.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square disclosed a large new Microsoft stake, signaling strong confidence in MSFT’s long-term AI and cloud growth prospects. Billionaire Bill Ackman Just Made a Massive Bet on Microsoft. Here's Why.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators continue to argue Microsoft remains a strong long-term compounder, with some saying the stock looks cheaper than it has in years on a cash-flow basis. Is Microsoft Stock a Steal Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts say Microsoft’s move away from an overly dependent OpenAI relationship could be beneficial over time because customers increasingly want access to multiple AI models rather than one exclusive partner. Why Microsoft's Split With OpenAI May Be Great for the Stock in the Long Run

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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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