Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Purchased by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 675,007 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 8,481 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 1.3% of Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $284,515,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 464,370 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $195,732,000 after buying an additional 25,818 shares during the period. Essential Planning LLC. raised its stake in Microsoft by 1,782.2% in the fourth quarter. Essential Planning LLC. now owns 84,058 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $35,800,000 after buying an additional 79,592 shares in the last quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP raised its stake in Microsoft by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP now owns 1,758,009 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $741,001,000 after buying an additional 37,958 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,922 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $7,976,000 after buying an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 15,864 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,687,000 after buying an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total value of $32,703,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 476,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,995,413.95. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 13,243 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.01, for a total value of $5,985,968.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,481,631. This trade represents a 23.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 94,243 shares of company stock valued at $41,288,738 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Westpark Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $435.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.30.

Microsoft Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $458.87 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $396.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $412.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Microsoft Co. has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $468.35. The firm has a market cap of $3.41 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.95, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $70.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.94 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 25.66%.

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.