Saxony Capital Management LLC Sells 114 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Saxony Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,247 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 114 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 2.1% of Saxony Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Saxony Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,898,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 169.2% during the 2nd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 70 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $58,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1,290.0% in the 1st quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Bellevue Group AG raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 47.5% during the 1st quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 1st quarter valued at about $80,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

MSFT stock opened at $420.69 on Wednesday. Microsoft Co. has a one year low of $311.21 and a one year high of $468.35. The firm has a market cap of $3.13 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.42, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $418.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $425.13.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.69 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, September 16th that permits the company to buyback $60.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the software giant to buy up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 28.74%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 544,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $219,349,953.73. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the company’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 transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total transaction of $6,009,869.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 786,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $328,473,703.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 190,629 shares of company stock valued at $77,916,485 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America raised their price target on Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $493.94.

Microsoft 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.