CapWealth Advisors LLC Lowers Stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

CapWealth Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 91,469 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,567 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 4.2% of CapWealth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. CapWealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $38,554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Avondale Wealth Management increased its position in Microsoft by 144.4% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $470.00 price target on the stock. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Microsoft from $550.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wedbush cut their price target on Microsoft from $550.00 to $475.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $520.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, DA Davidson raised shares of Microsoft from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $425.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $499.97.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.0 %

MSFT traded down $3.83 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $367.78. 20,940,221 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,277,339. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $468.35. The stock's 50-day moving average is $389.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $413.21. The stock has a market cap of $2.73 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.61, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.00.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 26.73%.

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.