Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Acquired by Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV

Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,545 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 337 shares during the quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $5,085,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Newton One Investments LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 50.0% during the first quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $524.94 on Thursday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $344.79 and a 52-week high of $555.45. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $494.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $437.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.90 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.06.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.35 by $0.30. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.44% and a net margin of 36.15%. The business had revenue of $76.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $73.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 18.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Microsoft from $490.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Microsoft from $465.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson increased their target price on Microsoft from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Mizuho increased their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $609.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 13,243 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.01, for a total value of $5,985,968.43. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,481,631. This trade represents a 23.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 54,743 shares of company stock worth $24,921,913 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.