Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Raises Stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,078 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,022 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 1.3% of Geneos Wealth Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Geneos Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $35,860,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its stake in Microsoft by 35.7% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $45,000. Avondale Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of 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. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth $62,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on MSFT. StockNews.com cut Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $509.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $520.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.43.

Microsoft Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $388.56 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $376.91 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.89 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.29, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50-day moving average of $412.43 and a 200-day moving average of $420.55.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.93 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 26.73%.

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.