Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 53 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 8,000 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.0% of Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,443,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its stake in Microsoft by 27.0% during the first quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 1,016 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 35,888 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $15,099,000 after purchasing an additional 1,467 shares during the last quarter. Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 1st quarter worth about $9,119,000. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 130,175 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $54,767,000 after purchasing an additional 15,121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Instrumental Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Instrumental Wealth LLC now owns 2,499 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $436.60 on Monday. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $366.50 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $427.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $428.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a market capitalization of $3.25 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.90.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.20. Microsoft had a return on equity of 34.56% and a net margin of 35.61%. The company had revenue of $65.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.99 EPS. Microsoft’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 12.93 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, September 16th that allows the company to buyback $60.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the software giant to reacquire up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 27.39%.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total value of $10,425,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 117,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,911,598. This trade represents a 17.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher David Young sold 7,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.66, for a total transaction of $3,050,352.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 103,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,792,039.56. This represents a 6.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 41,200 shares of company stock valued at $17,383,892 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Microsoft from $506.00 to $548.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on Microsoft from $495.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $508.46.

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.