Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 2,724 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Highland Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 287,263 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 2,724 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 6.9% of Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $121,081,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,645,000. Oak Ridge Investments LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 263,534 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $113,399,000 after purchasing an additional 18,544 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. grew its position in Microsoft by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 76,296 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $32,830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares in the last quarter. Campbell Wealth Management bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,314,000. Finally, Evernest Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 389.2% in the 3rd quarter. Evernest Financial Advisors LLC now owns 53,770 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $23,137,000 after purchasing an additional 42,778 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Up 1.1 %

MSFT stock opened at $391.26 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.91 trillion, a PE ratio of 31.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $376.91 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $408.82 and its 200 day moving average is $419.67. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 prior year, the business posted $2.93 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSFT has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group reduced 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. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $520.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $470.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.59.

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.