Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Down 0.2% Following Insider Selling

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s stock price dropped 0.2% during trading on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $428.60 and last traded at $430.07. Approximately 4,772,987 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 20,485,646 shares. The stock had previously closed at $430.98.

Specifically, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $430.87, for a total transaction of $1,077,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 53,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,203,211.24. This trade represents a 4.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $423.48, for a total transaction of $423,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 56,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,931,278.28. This trade represents a 1.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MSFT. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. DA Davidson lowered shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $475.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $495.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $503.03.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.1 %

The firm’s fifty day moving average is $420.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $426.70. The firm has a market cap of $3.21 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.20. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.61% and a return on equity of 34.56%. The company had revenue of $65.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.99 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 12.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 27.39%.

Microsoft declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software giant to buy up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microsoft

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Rebalance LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 0.7% during the second quarter. Rebalance LLC now owns 3,451 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,542,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls raised its position in Microsoft by 0.4% in the second quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 6,340 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,834,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. BCK Partners Inc. boosted its stake 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 in the last quarter. Doheny Asset Management CA lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Doheny Asset Management CA now owns 6,397 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,691,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Flagship Private Wealth LLC now owns 913 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $408,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

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.