Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Position Raised by Northstar Advisory Group LLC

Northstar Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,768 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 6.6% of Northstar Advisory Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Northstar Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $11,517,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rebalance LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rebalance LLC now owns 3,451 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,542,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 6,340 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,834,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Partnership Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Partnership Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,202 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,609,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Doheny Asset Management CA raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Doheny Asset Management CA now owns 6,397 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,691,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Flagship Private Wealth LLC now owns 913 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Microsoft from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $493.47.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $416.12 on Thursday. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $324.39 and a 1-year high of $468.35. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $419.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $424.59. The firm has a market cap of $3.09 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $64.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.38 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 35.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 28.74%.

Microsoft declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software giant to reacquire up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.04, for a total transaction of $1,027,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,552,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 786,933 shares in the company, valued at $328,473,703.53. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.04, for a total transaction of $1,027,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,552,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485. 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.