Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Down 0.6% - What's Next?

Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) were down 0.6% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $392.14 and last traded at $394.67. Approximately 4,999,734 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 22,479,984 shares. The stock had previously closed at $396.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on MSFT. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $525.00 to $510.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Microsoft from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $520.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $510.96.

Microsoft Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $417.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $422.24. The firm has a market cap of $2.95 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.41, for a total value 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. This represents a 4.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. IFS Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

About Microsoft

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.