Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Purchased by Fulton Bank N.A.

Fulton Bank N.A. raised its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 117,366 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.9% of Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $49,470,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. BCK Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Microsoft by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. BCK Partners Inc. now owns 1,353 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $582,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC now owns 6,986 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,108,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 2,997 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,290,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Sequent Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sequent Asset Management LLC now owns 1,983 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $853,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $408.43 on Tuesday. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $385.58 and a 52-week high of $468.35. The firm has a market cap of $3.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.88, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35. The business’s fifty day moving average is $428.76 and its 200 day moving average is $422.92.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted 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 last year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. Research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.07 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business 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. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.73%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total transaction of $10,425,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 117,294 shares in the company, valued at $48,911,598. This trade represents a 17.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.41, for a total value of $1,118,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 49,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,080,578.32. The trade was a 4.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,333,540 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on MSFT. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $497.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Microsoft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Microsoft from $475.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.96.

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.