Financial Counselors Inc. Raises Stake in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Rating) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 652,419 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 31,474 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 4.2% of Financial Counselors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $201,147,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. ACT Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. ACT Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,097 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,378,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement & Preservation of GA LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement & Preservation of GA LLC now owns 4,995 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,680,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. KB Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. KB Financial Partners LLC now owns 7,148 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,404,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Valtinson Bruner Financial Planning LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Valtinson Bruner Financial Planning LLC now owns 4,238 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 5.9% during the first quarter. Strategic Asset Management LLC now owns 659 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $203,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 69.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $282.91 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $262.96 and its 200-day moving average is $280.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.11 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.35, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.93. Microsoft Co. has a 52 week low of $241.51 and a 52 week high of $349.67.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 26th. The software giant reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.06). Microsoft had a return on equity of 43.31% and a net margin of 36.69%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.17 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 10.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 17th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 25.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup cut their price target on Microsoft from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 27th. Wolfe Research cut their price target on Microsoft from $320.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 29th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $320.00 price target on Microsoft in a report on Thursday, June 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Microsoft from $325.00 to $320.00 in a report on Monday, June 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $335.72.

Microsoft Profile

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Microsoft Corporation develops, licenses, and supports software, services, devices, and solutions worldwide. Its Productivity and Business Processes segment offers Office, Exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, Office 365 Security and Compliance, and Skype for Business, as well as related Client Access Licenses (CAL); Skype, Outlook.com, OneDrive, and LinkedIn; and Dynamics 365, a set of cloud-based and on-premises business solutions for organizations and enterprise divisions.