Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Holdings Cut by Eagle Ridge Investment Management

Eagle Ridge Investment Management reduced its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 122,686 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 266 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 4.6% of Eagle Ridge Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Eagle Ridge Investment Management’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $52,792,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ergawealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Microsoft by 3.3% in the third quarter. Ergawealth Advisors Inc. now owns 934 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV grew its position in Microsoft by 32.4% in the third quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 12,825 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $5,519,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139 shares in the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 0.3% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 62,299 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $26,807,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 8.4% during the third quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 15,245 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,560,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peoples Bank OH boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Peoples Bank OH now owns 9,556 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $4,112,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.1 %

Microsoft stock opened at $436.60 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $366.50 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The company has a market capitalization of $3.25 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $427.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $428.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $65.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.57 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.61% and a return on equity of 34.56%. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.99 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 12.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software giant to buy up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $414.72, for a total transaction of $414,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 57,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,850,961.92. This represents a 1.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher David Young sold 7,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.66, for a total transaction of $3,050,352.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 103,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,792,039.56. The trade was a 6.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 41,200 shares of company stock worth $17,383,892. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. DA Davidson cut shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $475.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $515.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Microsoft from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $508.46.

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.