Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Holdings Lifted by Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,430 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 3.4% of Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $28,790,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,920,047,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $9,625,201,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Microsoft by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 664,908,939 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $250,032,357,000 after purchasing an additional 15,701,937 shares in the last quarter. TCI Fund Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $4,000,376,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 277.8% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 7,004,341 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,633,912,000 after purchasing an additional 5,150,160 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MSFT. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, May 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Microsoft from $450.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Microsoft from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $465.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $470.86.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.3 %

Microsoft stock opened at $453.55 on Monday. Microsoft Co. has a one year low of $309.45 and a one year high of $468.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $435.94 and a 200 day moving average of $416.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $3.37 trillion, a PE ratio of 39.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.89.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.13. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.43% and a return on equity of 37.54%. The firm had revenue of $61.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.45 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 11.77 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.66%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.53, for a total transaction of $101,389.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 47,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,534,480.83. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.68, for a total transaction of $10,642,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 104,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $44,674,690.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.53, for a total transaction of $101,389.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 47,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,534,480.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 25,566 shares of company stock valued at $10,877,535. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.