Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Up 0.1% – Here’s Why

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. StockNews.com upgraded Microsoft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $497.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $520.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.96.

Microsoft Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $426.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $422.84. The firm has a market cap of $3.09 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.90.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.93 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 26.73%.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.48, for a total transaction of $423,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 56,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,931,278.28. This represents a 1.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total transaction of $10,425,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 117,294 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,911,598. This trade represents a 17.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 34,000 shares of company stock worth $14,333,540. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its position in Microsoft by 35.7% during 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. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.