Argyle Capital Management Inc. Has $13.03 Million Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Argyle Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 9.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,150 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 3,187 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 5.4% of Argyle Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Argyle Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $13,029,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its position in Microsoft by 169.2% in the 2nd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 70 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 1,290.0% during 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 boosted its stake in Microsoft by 47.5% in the 1st quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the 1st quarter worth $80,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 544,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $219,349,953.73. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 78,353 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.63, for a total transaction of $32,017,386.39. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 864,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $353,189,942.01. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 190,629 shares of company stock valued at $77,916,485. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $416.06 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.02, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.90. Microsoft Co. has a twelve month low of $314.90 and a twelve month high of $468.35. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $418.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $425.03.

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

Microsoft declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software giant to reacquire up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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 issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 0.80%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MSFT. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. 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. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $493.94.

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.