Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Acquired by Wendell David Associates Inc.

Wendell David Associates Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 137,495 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 2,214 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 5.6% of Wendell David Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Wendell David Associates Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $51,704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Monumental Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 534.5% during the second quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 184 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the second quarter worth approximately $601,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the third quarter worth approximately $69,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 89.0% in the third quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $421.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $415.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $460.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Microsoft from $465.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $432.13.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $404.27 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $275.37 and a 52-week high of $430.82. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $415.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $384.29. The company has a market capitalization of $3.00 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.89.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The software giant reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.17. Microsoft had a return on equity of 38.40% and a net margin of 36.27%. The firm had revenue of $62.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 11.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.78, for a total transaction of $18,530,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 574,129 shares in the company, valued at $236,414,839.62. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,955 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $403.96, for a total value of $8,868,941.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 159,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,538,265.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.78, for a total value of $18,530,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 574,129 shares in the company, valued at $236,414,839.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,070,258 shares of company stock worth $30,690,456. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft 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.