Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Golden State Equity Partners’ 3rd Largest Position

Golden State Equity Partners grew its position in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1,179.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,037 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 35,986 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 3.1% of Golden State Equity Partners’ portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in Microsoft were worth $16,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Microsoft Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $390.58 on Friday. Microsoft Co. has a 1 year low of $376.91 and a 1 year high of $468.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.90 trillion, a PE ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $406.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $419.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company earned $2.93 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given 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 is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank began coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $470.00 target price for the company. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $550.00 to $595.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average 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.