Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Holdings Decreased by Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV

Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV decreased its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,730 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 32 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 3.6% of Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $9,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. increased its holdings in Microsoft by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 25,365 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,538,000 after buying an additional 960 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. Stonebridge Financial Planning Group LLC now owns 3,774 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,419,000 after acquiring an additional 874 shares during the last quarter. Firestone Capital Management grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Firestone Capital Management now owns 7,504 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,822,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors now owns 8,188 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,079,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 717,234 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $269,709,000 after purchasing an additional 18,266 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Finally, DA Davidson downgraded shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $475.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $493.94.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $430.30 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $3.20 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.90. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $311.21 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $419.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $425.10.

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

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.74%.

Microsoft announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, September 16th that permits the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the software giant to buy up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total value of $6,009,869.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 786,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $328,473,703.53. 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 Microsoft stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 496,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $203,784,292.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total value of $6,009,869.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 786,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $328,473,703.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.