Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s Largest Position

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 270,546 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,903 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 4.9% of Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $120,921,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its holdings in Microsoft by 169.2% in the second quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 70 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1,290.0% during the first quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Bellevue Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 47.5% during the first quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 36.8% in the 1st quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 305 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total value of $16,103,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total value of $16,103,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 17,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.85, for a total transaction of $7,157,129.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 150,161 shares in the company, valued at approximately $61,843,807.85. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $408.46 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.70, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.30. Microsoft Co. has a fifty-two week low of $353.35 and a fifty-two week high of $468.35. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $420.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $424.74.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $65.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.57 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.61% and a return on equity of 34.56%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.99 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 12.98 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $60.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the software giant to repurchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 27.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Microsoft from $506.00 to $548.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, October 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Microsoft from $515.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Argus upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $503.03.

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.