Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stake Lifted by Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 840,966 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 5,842 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 12.4% of Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $375,870,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Richardson Capital Management LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 1,290.0% in the first quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $58,000. Bellevue Group AG increased its holdings in Microsoft by 47.5% in the 1st quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 1st quarter valued at about $80,000. Finally, Cooksen Wealth LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $86,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $520.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 13th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Microsoft from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $494.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of Microsoft 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy Hood sold 38,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.55, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 190,629 shares of company stock valued at $77,916,485 over the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $435.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Microsoft Co. has a one year low of $309.45 and a one year high of $468.35. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $420.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $424.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.90.

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

Microsoft announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, September 16th that permits the company to buyback $60.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the software giant to purchase up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.97%.

Microsoft 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.