Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Down 1.1% – Time to Sell?

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s stock price dropped 1.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $410.58 and last traded at $413.40. Approximately 4,212,653 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 20,453,297 shares. The stock had previously closed at $417.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup reduced their price target on Microsoft from $500.00 to $497.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, October 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $506.00 to $548.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $503.03.

Microsoft Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $422.21 and a 200-day moving average of $426.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.91.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The software giant reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $65.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.57 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.61% and a return on equity of 34.56%. The firm’s revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.99 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.75%.

Microsoft declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, September 16th that permits the company to buyback $60.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the software giant to reacquire up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Amy Hood sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.55, for a total transaction of $15,600,900.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 496,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $203,784,292.95. This trade represents a 7.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 78,353 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.63, for a total transaction of $32,017,386.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 864,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $353,189,942.01. The trade was a 8.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 183,431 shares of company stock worth $74,956,968. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microsoft

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 169.2% during the second quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 70 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 3rd quarter valued at about $62,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $75,000. Finally, Bellevue Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 47.5% during the first quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 180 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently 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.