Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Webster Bank N. A.’s 6th Largest Position

Webster Bank N. A. increased its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,941 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,331 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 3.3% of Webster Bank N. A.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Webster Bank N. A.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $30,323,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position 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 worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management increased its position in Microsoft by 144.4% during the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the third quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth about $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $388.70 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $411.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $420.49. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $376.91 and a 1-year high of $468.35. The company has a market cap of $2.89 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.30, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.93 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $520.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $509.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.43.

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.