Factory Mutual Insurance Co. Lowers Stock Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Factory Mutual Insurance Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,103,168 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 11,800 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 5.0% of Factory Mutual Insurance Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Factory Mutual Insurance Co.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $464,985,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Custom Index Systems LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Custom Index Systems LLC now owns 8,373 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,529,000 after buying an additional 1,111 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $5,626,000. Austin Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 23,957 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $10,098,000 after acquiring an additional 1,810 shares during the period. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 35,995 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $15,172,000 after purchasing an additional 4,684 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Southern Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Southern Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,725 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,678,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $395.16 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $407.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $419.53. 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 $376.91 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.82, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share 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 prior year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal 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 is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $520.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Microsoft from $525.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.