Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Trading Up 1.4% - Here's Why

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) shares were up 1.4% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $438.50 and last traded at $437.93. Approximately 6,166,840 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 20,137,863 shares. The stock had previously closed at $431.95.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on MSFT shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Microsoft from $465.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Mizuho upped their target price on Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Microsoft from $520.00 to $510.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $502.97.

Microsoft Stock Up 1.2 %

The business has a 50 day moving average of $420.84 and a 200-day moving average of $424.65. The stock has a market cap of $3.25 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.05. Microsoft had a return on equity of 35.95% and a net margin of 35.96%. The company had revenue of $64.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.38 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.69 EPS. The company's revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.11%.

Microsoft declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software giant to purchase up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.04, for a total value of $1,027,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 50,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,552,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total value of $6,009,869.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 786,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $328,473,703.53. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.04, for a total value of $1,027,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 50,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,552,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 190,629 shares of company stock valued at $77,916,485 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Evanson Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.4% in the first quarter. Evanson Asset Management LLC now owns 31,254 shares of the software giant's stock worth $13,149,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 4.6% in the first quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. now owns 15,260 shares of the software giant's stock worth $6,420,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank of Raymore raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.3% in the first quarter. Community Bank of Raymore now owns 7,098 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,986,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Von Berge Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 5.8% in the first quarter. Von Berge Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 4,252 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,789,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New England Professional Planning Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 7.4% in the first quarter. New England Professional Planning Group Inc. now owns 779 shares of the software giant's stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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