Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Down 1.1%

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) dropped 1.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $399.19 and last traded at $401.95. Approximately 7,424,804 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 21,933,494 shares. The stock had previously closed at $406.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the subject of several analyst reports. Macquarie raised their price objective on Microsoft from $430.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $465.00 price target (up previously from $455.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Microsoft from $455.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $490.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $421.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $452.61.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.0 %

The firm's fifty day moving average is $414.48 and its 200-day moving average is $388.51. The company has a market capitalization of $2.99 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $61.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.86 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 36.43%. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.45 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 11.71 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.97%.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 570,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $231,823,855.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,955 shares of the company's 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 159,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,538,265.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $406.12, for a total value of $1,341,414.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 570,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at $231,823,855.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,070,258 shares of company stock valued at $30,690,456. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microsoft

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Security Advisor Inc. grew its position in Microsoft by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Financial Security Advisor Inc. now owns 27,270 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $10,255,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the period. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. now owns 24,887 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $9,359,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC now owns 8,213 shares of the software giant's stock worth $3,089,000 after acquiring an additional 1,067 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 470,301 shares of the software giant's stock worth $148,497,000 after acquiring an additional 5,366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RNC Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC now owns 69,053 shares of the software giant's stock worth $25,967,000 after acquiring an additional 6,484 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Microsoft

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.