Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC Makes New Investment in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 5,492 shares of the software giant’s stock, valued at approximately $2,455,000. Microsoft makes up approximately 1.4% of Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,920,047,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 664,908,939 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $250,032,357,000 after acquiring an additional 15,701,937 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the first quarter valued at $5,587,119,000. TCI Fund Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $4,000,376,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 77.6% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 6,281,925 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,642,931,000 after buying an additional 2,744,900 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Amy Hood sold 38,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.55, for a total value of $15,600,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 496,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,784,292.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Amy Hood sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.55, for a total value of $15,600,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 496,369 shares in the company, valued at $203,784,292.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 78,353 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.63, for a total transaction of $32,017,386.39. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 864,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $353,189,942.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 130,751 shares of company stock worth $53,628,156. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $401.70 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $2.99 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.78, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.90. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $309.45 and a 52 week high of $468.35. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $427.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $422.93.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.05. Microsoft had a return on equity of 35.95% and a net margin of 35.96%. The business had revenue of $64.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 25.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Microsoft from $465.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. New Street Research started coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $570.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $494.72.

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.