Safeguard Financial LLC Purchases 331 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Safeguard Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,427 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 0.8% of Safeguard Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Safeguard Financial LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,552,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its stake in Microsoft by 35.7% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. Avondale Wealth Management raised its stake in 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. purchased a new position in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $141,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $408.25 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $425.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $423.04. Microsoft Co. has a 1 year low of $385.58 and a 1 year 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.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.48, for a total value of $423,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 56,511 shares in the company, valued at $23,931,278.28. This trade represents a 1.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 8,000 shares of company stock worth $3,493,820. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Loop Capital boosted their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $525.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.96.

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.