Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Sold by Virtus Wealth Solutions LLC

Virtus Wealth Solutions LLC trimmed its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 4.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 16,805 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 733 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 1.9% of Virtus Wealth Solutions LLC's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Virtus Wealth Solutions LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $6,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Newton One Investments LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 50.0% during the first quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the software giant's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth about $62,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total value of $1,389,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 43,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,339,590. The trade was a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 16,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $458.18, for a total value of $7,330,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 98,010 shares of the company's stock, valued at $44,906,221.80. This trade represents a 14.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 54,743 shares of company stock worth $24,921,913. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on MSFT. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Microsoft from $530.00 to $582.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $609.86.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of MSFT stock traded down $4.10 during trading on Thursday, reaching $520.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,045,615 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,850,260. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $495.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $437.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $555.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.06.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.35 by $0.30. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 32.44%. The business had revenue of $76.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $73.79 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.34%.

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.