Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stake Decreased by Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,193,445 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 14,247 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 2.0% of Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $533,410,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 667,987,038 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $281,035,506,000 after purchasing an additional 3,078,099 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $35,920,047,000. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 83,571,070 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $35,160,020,000 after buying an additional 842,884 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,381,692 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,544,532,000 after buying an additional 403,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its stake in Microsoft by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 13,640,068 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,096,428,000 after acquiring an additional 360,171 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the topic of several recent research reports. 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 report on Thursday, July 18th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Microsoft from $475.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Microsoft from $465.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $520.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $493.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 78,353 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.63, for a total transaction of $32,017,386.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 864,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $353,189,942.01. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 78,353 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.63, for a total value of $32,017,386.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 864,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $353,189,942.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.04, for a total value of $1,027,600.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 50,000 shares in the company, valued at $20,552,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 190,629 shares of company stock worth $77,916,485 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $417.13 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.10 trillion, a P/E ratio of 36.12, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $418.54 and a 200-day moving average of $425.07. Microsoft Co. has a 52-week low of $311.21 and a 52-week high of $468.35.

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

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.83 dividend. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.74%.

Microsoft declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $60.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the software giant to purchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.