Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Holdings Cut by Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC decreased its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.3% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,982,872 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 63,871 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 7.1% of Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $2,227,095,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 1,290.0% during the first quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Bellevue Group AG boosted its stake in Microsoft by 47.5% in the first quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the first quarter worth $80,000. Finally, Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $86,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider now owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at $219,349,953.73. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 17,378 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.85, for a total transaction of $7,157,129.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 150,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,843,807.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at $219,349,953.73. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 190,629 shares of company stock valued at $77,916,485 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus raised their price objective on Microsoft from $475.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Microsoft from $520.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $494.72.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $435.27 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.69, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $420.92 and a 200 day moving average of $424.18. 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 twelve month low of $309.45 and a twelve month high of $468.35.

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

Microsoft announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $60.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the software giant to reacquire up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.83 dividend. This is a positive change 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.97%.

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.