SLT Holdings LLC Makes New $3.97 Million Investment in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

SLT Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 9,424 shares of the software giant’s stock, valued at approximately $3,972,000. Microsoft accounts for about 3.8% of SLT Holdings LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,866,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $443,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Boulder Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Boulder Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,569 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,540 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Kuhn & Co Investment Counsel now owns 3,286 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,385,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $453.13 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $468.35. The stock has a market cap of $3.37 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The business’s 50 day moving average is $393.86 and its 200-day moving average is $412.42.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. The company had revenue of $70.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $68.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.94 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 25.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Microsoft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Citigroup upped their price target on Microsoft from $480.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $509.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total transaction of $32,703,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 476,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,995,413.95. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is owned by 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.