Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Holdings Reduced by Stockbridge Partners LLC

Stockbridge Partners LLC reduced its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,014,172 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 46,748 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 9.9% of Stockbridge Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Stockbridge Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $504,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $50,493,678,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 564,387.1% in the 2nd quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 90,549,369 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $45,040,162,000 after purchasing an additional 90,533,328 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft in the first quarter worth $18,733,827,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 49,640.3% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $14,905,904,000 after purchasing an additional 29,906,791 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Microsoft by 2.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $350,712,742,000 after buying an additional 13,691,572 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $483.47 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $555.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $504.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $501.85.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $77.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.49 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.71% and a return on equity of 32.45%. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.30 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.89%.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total value of $6,266,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total transaction of $1,364,352.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares in the company, valued at $26,703,959.04. The trade was a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 54,100 shares of company stock worth $27,598,872. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on MSFT shares. Robert W. Baird began coverage on Microsoft in a research report on Friday, November 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI set a $640.00 target price on Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Guggenheim set a $675.00 price target on Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $632.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $632.34.

Microsoft Company 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.