Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Sold by Ninepoint Partners LP

Ninepoint Partners LP lessened its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 17.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,909 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,434 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 0.4% of Ninepoint Partners LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Ninepoint Partners LP’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $2,912,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 144.4% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the third quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.5%

MSFT stock opened at $454.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.62, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.99. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $468.35. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $401.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $413.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 13,243 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.01, for a total transaction of $5,985,968.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,100 shares in the company, valued at $19,481,631. This represents a 23.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total value of $32,703,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 476,999 shares in the company, valued at $207,995,413.95. This represents a 13.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 131,743 shares of company stock worth $58,375,673. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Microsoft from $472.00 to $482.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $513.13.

About Microsoft

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.