Sherman Asset Management Inc. Takes $3.37 Million Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Sherman Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 7,991 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $3,368,000. Microsoft comprises approximately 3.1% of Sherman Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,866,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the software giant's stock worth $443,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Sequent Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sequent Asset Management LLC now owns 1,983 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $853,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Point Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Point Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,208 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,380,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverstone Advisors LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 0.6% in the third quarter. Riverstone Advisors LLC now owns 4,510 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,941,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of MSFT opened at $433.35 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $387.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $411.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $3.22 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.89, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $344.79 and a 52-week high of $468.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.24. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. The business had revenue of $70.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.94 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. Microsoft's payout ratio is 25.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Microsoft from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Microsoft from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Microsoft from $472.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $507.77.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 476,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $207,995,413.95. This trade represents a 13.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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