Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Bought by Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC

Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 10.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,369 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 413 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 0.8% of Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,953,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1,290.0% during the 1st quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Bellevue Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 47.5% in the 1st quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the first quarter worth $80,000. Finally, Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at $86,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $435.27 on Monday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $420.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $424.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $3.24 trillion, a PE ratio of 37.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.90. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $309.45 and a 52 week high of $468.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.05. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 35.95%. The company had revenue of $64.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.97%.

Microsoft announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Monday, September 16th that permits the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the software giant to purchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Mizuho raised their price objective on Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Bank of America upped their target price on Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $494.72.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total value of $16,103,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 544,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total transaction of $6,009,869.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 786,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $328,473,703.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total value of $16,103,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 190,629 shares of company stock valued at $77,916,485 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is owned by 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.