Hanson & Doremus Investment Management Has $18.38 Million Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Hanson & Doremus Investment Management increased its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,115 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 825 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 3.1% of Hanson & Doremus Investment Management’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $18,376,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 4,021 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,798,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Ogorek Anthony Joseph NY ADV grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 14.6% in the second quarter. Ogorek Anthony Joseph NY ADV now owns 5,559 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,484,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the period. Element Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 264.9% during the second quarter. Element Capital Management LLC now owns 48,321 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $21,597,000 after purchasing an additional 35,077 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $11,240,000. Finally, Hoge Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 35.0% in the second quarter. Hoge Financial Services LLC now owns 3,317 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 860 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total value of $6,009,869.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 786,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $328,473,703.53. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of Microsoft 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 transaction, the insider now owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 786,933 shares in the company, valued at $328,473,703.53. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MSFT shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Microsoft from $470.00 to $465.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twenty-six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $503.03.

Microsoft Stock Performance

MSFT opened at $406.35 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $3.02 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $420.82 and a 200 day moving average of $424.58. Microsoft Co. has a fifty-two week low of $334.69 and a fifty-two week high of $468.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $65.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.57 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 35.95% and a net margin of 35.96%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.99 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $60.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the software giant to reacquire up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 28.11%.

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.