Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Purchased by Anchor Investment Management LLC

Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,089 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,697 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 4.1% of Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $43,499,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,645,000. Oak Ridge Investments LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 263,534 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $113,399,000 after buying an additional 18,544 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,975,200 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $882,816,000 after purchasing an additional 31,401 shares during the period. Jacobs & Co. CA raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 96,021 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $41,318,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 76,296 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $32,830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $495.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $465.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $510.96.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $410.54 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $430.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $423.13. Microsoft Co. has a 12-month low of $385.58 and a 12-month high of $468.35. The firm has a market cap of $3.05 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.05, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 quarter last year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 26.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total transaction of $10,425,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 117,294 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,911,598. This trade represents a 17.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $414.72, for a total transaction of $414,720.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 57,511 shares in the company, valued at $23,850,961.92. This represents a 1.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,000 shares of company stock worth $14,333,540. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.