Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Wealth Effects LLC’s 5th Largest Position

Wealth Effects LLC decreased its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,936 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 331 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises 3.2% of Wealth Effects LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Wealth Effects LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $8,910,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MSFT. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 169.2% in the second 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 period. 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 valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at about $75,000. Bellevue Group AG boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 47.5% during the first quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the first quarter worth about $80,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Microsoft news, CFO Amy Hood sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.55, for a total transaction of $15,600,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 496,369 shares in the company, valued at $203,784,292.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of Microsoft 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 786,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $328,473,703.53. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $416.72 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a twelve month low of $324.39 and a twelve month high of $468.35. The company has a market capitalization of $3.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 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. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $419.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $424.54.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. DA Davidson cut Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $475.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Argus upped their target price on Microsoft from $475.00 to $526.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $520.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $495.68.

About Microsoft

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.