Blue Trust Inc. Has $59.69 Million Position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 138,717 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,484 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up approximately 0.7% of Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $59,690,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted 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 worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management grew its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the third quarter worth about $62,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $141,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $388.70 on Tuesday. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $376.91 and a 12 month high of $468.35. The company has a market capitalization of $2.89 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $411.64 and a 200-day moving average of $420.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 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 EPS 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.93 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lowered their target price on Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Microsoft from $525.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.43.

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.