Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Financial Partners Group LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Financial Partners Group LLC trimmed its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,888 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 542 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 5.2% of Financial Partners Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Financial Partners Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $12,598,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Greater Midwest Financial Group LLC now owns 39,421 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $16,616,000 after purchasing an additional 5,061 shares during the last quarter. Crown Oak Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $377,000. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 65,362 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $27,550,000 after buying an additional 1,997 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 60.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,040,807 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $438,700,000 after acquiring an additional 393,259 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 117.1% during the 4th quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC now owns 23,335 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $9,836,000 after acquiring an additional 12,588 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $383.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.85 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $376.91 and a 52-week high of $468.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $413.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $421.06.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) 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 prior year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group cut their target price on Microsoft from $525.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $509.54.

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.