Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Up 0.2%

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 0.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $399.93 and last traded at $395.92. Approximately 4,194,471 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 21,968,414 shares. The stock had previously closed at $394.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $480.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Macquarie upped their price objective on Microsoft from $430.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $452.61.

Microsoft Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a market cap of $2.96 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $413.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $389.54.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.13. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.43% and a return on equity of 37.54%. The firm had revenue of $61.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.86 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.45 EPS. The company's revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 11.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. Microsoft's payout ratio is 25.97%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $406.12, for a total transaction of $1,341,414.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 570,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $231,823,855.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $406.12, for a total transaction of $1,341,414.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 570,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $231,823,855.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,955 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $403.96, for a total transaction of $8,868,941.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 159,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,538,265.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,070,258 shares of company stock valued at $30,690,456 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 1,290.0% during the first quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,000. PayPay Securities Corp grew its position in Microsoft by 23.7% in the 4th quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 188 shares of the software giant's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 1st quarter valued at $80,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently 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.