Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Position Cut by Shell Asset Management Co.

Shell Asset Management Co. trimmed its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 474,557 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 19,810 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 6.4% of Shell Asset Management Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $161,606,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 19.9% in the first quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 14,342 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $4,422,000 after buying an additional 2,383 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 20.8% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 1,138,469 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $351,001,000 after buying an additional 196,338 shares during the last quarter. Altus Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Altus Wealth Group LLC now owns 12,712 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,919,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Powell Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 16.2% during the 1st quarter. Powell Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,578 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $795,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 6,782 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,921,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. 69.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $360.53 on Wednesday. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $219.35 and a 52 week high of $366.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.66. The company’s fifty day moving average is $330.14 and its 200-day moving average is $327.98. The company has a market capitalization of $2.68 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.88.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 24th. The software giant reported $2.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.34. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.31% and a return on equity of 38.79%. The company had revenue of $56.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 16th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 15th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 26.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on MSFT. Bank of America lifted their price target on Microsoft from $340.00 to $405.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 19th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Microsoft from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $385.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, September 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $390.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, October 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $384.34.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.43, for a total transaction of $12,557,192.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 800,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,963,391.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 26,815 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.37, for a total transaction of $8,778,426.55. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 198,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,941,369.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 38,234 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.43, for a total value of $12,557,192.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 800,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $262,963,391.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.03% of the stock is currently 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.