By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. decreased its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 65.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,158 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 9,827 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $2,174,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MSFT. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Microsoft during the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. Avondale Wealth Management grew its position in Microsoft by 144.4% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the third quarter valued at $62,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several research analysts have commented on MSFT shares. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Microsoft from $525.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $509.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.43.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft
Microsoft Trading Down 1.2 %
Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $378.77 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $413.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $420.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.82 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Microsoft Co. has a fifty-two week low of $376.91 and a fifty-two week high of $468.35.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $2.93 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 26.73%.
Microsoft 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.
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