Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Stifel Financial Corp’s Largest Position

Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,156,045 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,234 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 3.2% of Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings, making the stock its biggest position. Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,079,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Swmg LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 476.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swmg LLC now owns 2,957 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 2,444 shares during the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 3.9% in the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 8,144 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,504,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth about $478,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter valued at about $130,072,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 27.4% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 842,254 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $362,422,000 after acquiring an additional 181,305 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $409.75 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $431.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $423.79. 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 1-year low of $385.58 and a 1-year high of $468.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.93 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 26.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, EVP Christopher David Young sold 7,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.66, for a total transaction of $3,050,352.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 103,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,792,039.56. The trade was a 6.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $414.72, for a total value of $414,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 57,511 shares in the company, valued at $23,850,961.92. This represents a 1.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,200 shares of company stock worth $17,383,892 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports 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. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $490.00 to $505.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price target on Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.96.

Microsoft Company 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.