Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Sold by Milestone Asset Management LLC

Milestone Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,626 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 101 shares during the period. Milestone Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,636,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MSFT. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% during the third 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 during the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 144.4% in the fourth 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. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the third quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $141,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $391.26 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $408.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $419.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.50, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $376.91 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $2.93 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $470.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $425.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $520.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.59.

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.