Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C.'s 6th Largest Position

Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. grew its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 17.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,069 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 2,705 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 4.3% of Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C.'s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,648,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $58,000. PayPay Securities Corp grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 188 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Cooksen Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Microsoft by 160.7% in the 4th quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. now owns 232 shares of the software giant's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MSFT shares. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $455.00 to $465.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $495.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $490.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $467.12.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT traded up $2.55 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $459.28. 13,964,562 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 20,857,426. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.41 trillion, a P/E ratio of 39.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $425.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $410.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $309.45 and a 52 week high of $459.59.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.13. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.43% and a return on equity of 37.54%. The company had revenue of $61.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.86 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.45 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.97%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.68, for a total transaction of $10,642,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 104,949 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,674,690.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 322 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $416.60, for a total value of $134,145.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 47,255 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,686,433. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.68, for a total transaction of $10,642,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 104,949 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $44,674,690.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,566 shares of company stock worth $10,877,535. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.