Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Holdings Raised by Gradient Investments LLC

Gradient Investments LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 285,163 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 11,770 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 2.5% of Gradient Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $147,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC now owns 23,240 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $12,037,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. TruWealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. TruWealth Advisors LLC now owns 95,580 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $49,506,000 after purchasing an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,620 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,911,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the period. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 0.4% in the third quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 15,772 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $8,169,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boltwood Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the third quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 18,133 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $9,392,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Microsoft from $650.00 to $625.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $500.00 target price (down from $560.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $632.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $631.03.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total transaction of $6,266,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total transaction of $1,364,352.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,703,959.04. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 54,100 shares of company stock worth $27,598,872 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft Trading Up 1.7%

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $483.98 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $500.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $502.57. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $555.45. The firm has a market cap of $3.60 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.40.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $77.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.49 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.71% and a return on equity of 32.45%. Microsoft’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.30 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 25.89%.

About Microsoft

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.