Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Stockbridge Partners LLC’s 10th Largest Position

Stockbridge Partners LLC reduced its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 23.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 759,278 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 236,414 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 6.6% of Stockbridge Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Stockbridge Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $326,717,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter valued at $62,000. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC lifted 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. Finally, MayTech Global Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at $200,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $410.92 on Tuesday. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $385.58 and a 52 week high of $468.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market cap of $3.05 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $432.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $424.44.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.93 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.03 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on MSFT. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $465.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.96.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher David Young sold 7,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.66, for a total transaction of $3,050,352.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total transaction of $10,425,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 117,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,911,598. This represents a 17.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 41,200 shares of company stock worth $17,383,892 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.