West Bancorporation Inc. Has $3.53 Million Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

West Bancorporation Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 8,382 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 382 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 2.3% of West Bancorporation Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. West Bancorporation Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,533,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new position in Microsoft during the third quarter worth $2,645,000. Oak Ridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 263,534 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $113,399,000 after acquiring an additional 18,544 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 76,296 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $32,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,489 shares during the last quarter. Campbell Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,314,000. Finally, Evernest Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 389.2% in the 3rd quarter. Evernest Financial Advisors LLC now owns 53,770 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $23,137,000 after purchasing an additional 42,778 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $395.16 on Wednesday. Microsoft Co. has a one year low of $376.91 and a one year high of $468.35. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $407.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $419.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market cap of $2.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.93 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 26.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on MSFT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $509.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $470.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.59.

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.