GraniteShares Advisors LLC raised its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,251 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 3.4% of GraniteShares Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. GraniteShares Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $5,350,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RFG Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 18.1% during the first quarter. RFG Holdings Inc. now owns 3,602 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 553 shares during the period. Baker Chad R increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% during the first quarter. Baker Chad R now owns 53,660 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $20,143,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. Thomasville National Bank increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.9% during the first quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 184,599 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $69,297,000 after acquiring an additional 3,374 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.1% during the first quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 229,957 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $86,324,000 after acquiring an additional 4,810 shares during the period. Finally, Ballew Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.6% during the first quarter. Ballew Advisors Inc now owns 2,537 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $985,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Activity at Microsoft
In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total transaction of $1,389,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,930 shares in the company, valued at $20,339,590. The trade was a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 13,243 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.01, for a total transaction of $5,985,968.43. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 43,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,481,631. This represents a 23.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 135,743 shares of company stock valued at $60,224,683 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Trading Down 0.1%
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $70.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.79% and a return on equity of 32.74%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.94 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation 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, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.66%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $550.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $485.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. TD Securities increased their price objective 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $534.14.
View Our Latest Report on MSFT
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.
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