Camden National Bank Sells 1,293 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Camden National Bank reduced its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 54,102 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,293 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up approximately 3.3% of Camden National Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Camden National Bank’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $23,280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its stake in Microsoft by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $45,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the third quarter worth $62,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $75,000. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $442.33 on Thursday. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $385.58 and a 52 week high of $468.35. The stock has a market cap of $3.29 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $432.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $425.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.61% and a return on equity of 34.56%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.93 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 12.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business 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 $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the subject of several research reports. Mizuho increased their target price on Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $497.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Microsoft from $548.00 to $540.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $490.00 to $505.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $512.66.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total value of $10,425,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 117,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,911,598. The trade was a 17.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $414.72, for a total value of $414,720.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 57,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,850,961.92. This trade represents a 1.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 41,200 shares of company stock worth $17,383,892. 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.