Talbot Financial LLC Lowers Position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Talbot Financial LLC reduced its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 0.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,167 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 687 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 9.7% of Talbot Financial LLC's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Talbot Financial LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $77,768,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,866,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,540 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,335,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel now owns 3,286 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,385,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliance Wealth Management Group raised its stake in Microsoft by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Alliance Wealth Management Group now owns 5,617 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,368,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total transaction of $32,703,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 476,999 shares in the company, valued at $207,995,413.95. This trade represents a 13.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.01, for a total transaction of $460,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 47,058 shares in the company, valued at $21,647,150.58. The trade was a 2.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 135,743 shares of company stock worth $60,224,683. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $480.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. TD Securities increased their price target on Microsoft from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $521.14.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $495.94 on Friday. 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $449.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $422.12. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $499.30. The firm has a market cap of $3.69 trillion, a P/E ratio of 38.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.03.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.67%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.66%.

Microsoft Company 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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