Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s 3rd Largest Position

Beaton Management Co. Inc. reduced its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,189 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 139 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 3.9% of Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,667,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Avondale Wealth Management increased its holdings in Microsoft by 144.4% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the third quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $141,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Microsoft from $530.00 to $472.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Scotiabank started coverage on Microsoft in a report on Thursday, March 20th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $470.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $509.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $499.97.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $367.78 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $388.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $412.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.73 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.61, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.00. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $344.79 and a 52-week high of $468.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.73%.

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.