Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Sold by Pacifica Partners Inc.

Pacifica Partners Inc. trimmed its stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,309 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 317 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 4.6% of Pacifica Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Pacifica Partners Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $10,594,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter valued at about $45,000. Avondale Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 144.4% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the third quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at about $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.48, for a total transaction of $423,480.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 56,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,931,278.28. This represents a 1.74 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,000 shares of company stock valued at $3,493,820. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $408.25 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $385.58 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.03 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $425.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $423.04.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.93 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Microsoft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $509.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.96.

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.