Massachusetts Wealth Management Sells 77 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Massachusetts Wealth Management lowered its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,809 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 77 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 2.6% of Massachusetts Wealth Management’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Massachusetts Wealth Management’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,134,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 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 purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management increased its holdings in Microsoft by 144.4% during the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $382.19 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market cap of $2.84 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $403.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $418.45. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $367.24 and a 1-year high of $468.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $550.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $509.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $508.86.

Microsoft Company 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.