Meitav Investment House Ltd. Trims Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Meitav Investment House Ltd. decreased its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 15.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 375,218 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 69,223 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 2.1% of Meitav Investment House Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Meitav Investment House Ltd.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $140,993,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sicart Associates LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Sicart Associates LLC now owns 926 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $348,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Capital Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,592 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $599,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Mayfair Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Mayfair Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,866 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,434,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Triton Wealth Management PLLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Triton Wealth Management PLLC now owns 5,864 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,167,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, O Connor Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 1.4% during the third quarter. O Connor Financial Group LLC now owns 2,191 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $410.54 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.89. Microsoft Co. has a 12-month low of $306.26 and a 12-month high of $430.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $413.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $392.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.13. Microsoft had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 36.43%. The business had revenue of $61.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.86 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 11.76 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Microsoft from $450.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $471.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, January 18th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Microsoft from $465.00 to $489.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $452.61.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Corp Microsoft sold 1,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 this link. In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,955 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $403.96, for a total value of $8,868,941.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 159,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,538,265.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Corp Microsoft sold 1,000,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 11,677,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,770,926.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.