Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC Increases Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,973 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up approximately 4.6% of Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $10,316,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,438 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,340,000 after acquiring an additional 589 shares during the last quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% during the third quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME now owns 10,686 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $4,598,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Kraft Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 9.7% in the third quarter. Kraft Asset Management LLC now owns 1,247 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,053 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $4,326,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares during the period. Finally, Gries Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 6.6% during the third quarter. Gries Financial LLC now owns 20,991 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $497.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Microsoft from $470.00 to $465.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $504.36.

Microsoft Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $448.99 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $422.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $427.22. The stock has a market cap of $3.34 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.05, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.90. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $364.13 and a 52-week high of $468.35. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.20. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.61% and a return on equity of 34.56%. The business had revenue of $65.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.99 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 12.93 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 27.39%.

Microsoft declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, September 16th that allows the company to buyback $60.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the software giant to purchase up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Christopher David Young sold 7,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.66, for a total value of $3,050,352.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 103,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,792,039.56. This trade 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 can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 117,294 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,911,598. The trade was a 17.57 % 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 valued at $17,383,892. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.