Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Trading Down 0.5% - Time to Sell?

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 0.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $408.66 and last traded at $413.07. Approximately 8,388,829 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 22,379,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $415.06.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MSFT. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $497.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Microsoft from $515.00 to $500.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $470.00 to $465.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $510.96.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.48, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90. The business's 50-day moving average is $431.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $423.85.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share 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 in the prior year, the company posted $2.93 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.73%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Christopher David Young sold 7,200 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.66, for a total value of $3,050,352.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 103,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $43,792,039.56. The trade was a 6.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.41, for a total transaction of $1,118,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 49,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,080,578.32. The trade was a 4.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 41,200 shares of company stock valued at $17,383,892. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its stake in Microsoft by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 53.8% in the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management raised 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 valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% 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.