Marshall Financial Group LLC Sells 53 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Marshall Financial Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,290 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 53 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 1.2% of Marshall Financial Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Marshall Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,152,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Castle Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Castle Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,088 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,041,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 103,199 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $38,807,000 after purchasing an additional 16,786 shares during the last quarter. MontVue Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $549,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 344 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CNB Bank lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. CNB Bank now owns 25,066 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $9,426,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total value of $16,103,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $219,349,953.73. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Amy Hood sold 38,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.55, for a total value of $15,600,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 496,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,784,292.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485 in the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $435.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.23 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.68, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $422.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $423.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Microsoft Co. has a 12 month low of $309.45 and a 12 month high of $468.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $64.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.38 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 35.95% and a net margin of 35.96%. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. Analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 25.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MSFT. New Street Research started coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $570.00 target price for the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on Microsoft from $520.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $494.72.

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.