Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Sold by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp cut its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,874,650 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 17,879 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 4.6% of Fifth Third Bancorp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,080,983,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Chatham Capital Group Inc. increased its holdings in Microsoft by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Chatham Capital Group Inc. now owns 30,761 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $11,567,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $219,000. Mirador Capital Partners LP increased its holdings in Microsoft by 71.1% in the fourth quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 31,184 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $11,726,000 after purchasing an additional 12,959 shares during the period. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd increased its holdings in Microsoft by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 78,958 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,691,000 after purchasing an additional 8,324 shares during the period. Finally, Von Berge Wealth Management Group LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Von Berge Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 4,020 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $411.84 on Thursday. Microsoft Co. has a twelve month low of $275.37 and a twelve month high of $430.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $415.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $384.15. The company has a market capitalization of $3.06 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.24, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The software giant reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.17. Microsoft had a return on equity of 38.40% and a net margin of 36.27%. The firm had revenue of $62.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.32 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 11.61 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 27.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Microsoft from $455.00 to $465.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, March 15th. BNP Paribas upgraded Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $471.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Microsoft from $460.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $431.03.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, major shareholder Corp Microsoft sold 1,000,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.95, for a total value of $1,950,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,677,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,770,926.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, major shareholder Corp Microsoft sold 1,000,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.95, for a total value of $1,950,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,677,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,770,926.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 45,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.78, for a total transaction of $18,530,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 574,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $236,414,839.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,070,258 shares of company stock worth $30,690,456 in the last 90 days. 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.