Private Advisor Group LLC Grows Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 609,628 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,236 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 1.4% of Private Advisor Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $228,848,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Newton One Investments LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 150 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $62,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $506.69 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $508.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $447.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $76.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $73.79 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 32.44%. The business’s revenue was up 18.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.95 EPS. Microsoft has set its Q1 2026 guidance at EPS. Analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $625.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $637.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $612.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $527.32, for a total value of $2,557,502.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,624,012.52. This trade represents a 11.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.