Rep. C. Scott Franklin Sells Off Shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Representative C. Scott Franklin (R-Florida) recently sold shares of Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ: MSFT. In a filing disclosed on July 14th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $15,001 and $50,000 in Microsoft stock on June 16th. The trade occurred in the Representative's "FIDELITY JOINT TBE" account.

Representative C. Scott Franklin also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Apple NASDAQ: AAPL on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Alphabet NASDAQ: GOOG on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. NYSE: MRK on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of McDonald's NYSE: MCD on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of United Parcel Service NYSE: UPS on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Johnson & Johnson NYSE: JNJ on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Walmart NYSE: WMT on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Berkshire Hathaway NYSE: BRK.B on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Home Depot NYSE: HD on 6/16/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Kenvue NYSE: KVUE on 6/16/2025.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT traded down $1.65 on Friday, hitting $510.05. 21,120,811 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,618,181. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $514.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.79 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.04. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $477.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $428.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.79% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The business had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.94 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Westpark Capital restated a "hold" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays increased their price target on Microsoft from $430.00 to $494.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson raised their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $541.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total transaction of $1,389,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,339,590. This trade represents a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 6,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $433.17, for a total transaction of $2,599,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 471,036 shares in the company, valued at $204,038,664.12. This trade represents a 1.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders 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

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in Microsoft by 27.0% in the 1st quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 1,016 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 12,658 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $5,658,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 410.4% in the 3rd quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,144,000 after purchasing an additional 2,138 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 2,374 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,375,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Representative Franklin

Scott Franklin (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Florida's 18th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2023. His current term ends on January 3, 2027. Franklin (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Florida's 18th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election. Scott Franklin was born in Thomaston, Georgia. Franklin graduated from Lakeland High School. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1986 to 2000 and the U.S. Navy Reserve from 2000 to 2012. Franklin earned a B.S. from the United States Naval Academy in 1986 and an M.B.A. from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 1994. Franklin's career experience includes owning an insurance agency and working as a naval aviator with the U.S. Navy.

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.