Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Price Target Raised to $600.00 at Wedbush

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Wedbush from $515.00 to $600.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the software giant's stock. Wedbush's price target would suggest a potential upside of 21.41% from the company's current price.

MSFT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on Microsoft from $502.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $565.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $519.43.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT traded up $4.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $494.21. The company had a trading volume of 3,094,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,926,441. The stock has a market cap of $3.67 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.03. Microsoft has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $494.56. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $441.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $420.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. The company 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%. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.94 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of Microsoft 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,339,590. This trade represents a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total value of $32,703,750.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 135,743 shares of company stock worth $60,224,683 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Newton One Investments LLC grew 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 worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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