Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Trading Up 0.1% – Should You Buy?

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s share price traded up 0.1% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $410.60 and last traded at $408.89. 5,214,346 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 21,742,418 shares. The stock had previously closed at $408.43.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $520.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $470.00 to $465.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Three 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 company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $510.96.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.2 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $428.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $422.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $3.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 last year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.07 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 26.73%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total value of $10,425,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 117,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,911,598. The trade was a 17.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $414.72, for a total transaction of $414,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 57,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,850,961.92. The trade was a 1.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 34,000 shares of company stock worth $14,333,540. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its holdings in Microsoft by 35.7% in the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. IFS Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 53.8% during the 4th 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. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

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.