Aries Wealth Management Has $13.35 Million Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Aries Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,570 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 865 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 3.6% of Aries Wealth Management’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Aries Wealth Management’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $13,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 684,071,705 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $288,336,224,000 after purchasing an additional 10,431,988 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 168,128,024 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $70,720,874,000 after purchasing an additional 3,103,212 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $44,343,058,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $35,316,535,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,470 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 59,961,337 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $25,273,704,000 after purchasing an additional 5,370,546 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.77, for a total value of $9,756,055.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 134,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,208,127.76. This trade represents a 13.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 43,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,339,590. The trade was a 6.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 135,743 shares of company stock worth $60,224,683. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.3%

MSFT opened at $510.05 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.79 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.42, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.04. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $514.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $477.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $428.49.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.79% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.94 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MSFT. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $485.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $541.79.

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.