Citizens & Northern Corp Has $13.69 Million Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Citizens & Northern Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,309 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 2,922 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 3.4% of Citizens & Northern Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Citizens & Northern Corp’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $13,691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Libra Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Libra Wealth LLC now owns 11,068 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $5,353,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Enterprises LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Enterprises LLC now owns 27,192 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $13,151,000 after buying an additional 3,786 shares in the last quarter. Nadler Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Nadler Financial Group Inc. now owns 31,370 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $15,171,000 after buying an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Microsoft by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 19,706 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,530,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,710 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,762,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $417.42 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.10 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s fifty day moving average is $398.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $439.04. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $356.28 and a 52-week high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.46 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.67%.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s Azure cloud business is still growing strongly, with recent commentary pointing to about 40% growth, reinforcing the company’s AI and cloud leadership thesis. 9 Best Cloud Stocks to Buy as Azure Growth Hits 40%
• Positive Sentiment: The jury defeat for Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI removed a legal overhang around Microsoft’s AI partner ecosystem and was viewed as a bullish development for MSFT’s broader AI strategy. Musk loses blockbuster OpenAI suit as jury says too late
• Positive Sentiment: New product news around Surface devices for business and AI workloads suggests Microsoft is still pushing enterprise hardware and AI adoption across its ecosystem. Microsoft launches Surface Pro 12 and Surface Laptop 8 with Intel chips
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft also unveiled enterprise Surface models powered by Intel Core Ultra chips, which is a product refresh but not likely a major near-term stock catalyst on its own. Microsoft (MSFT) Unveils Enterprise Surface Lineup Powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3
• Neutral Sentiment: LinkedIn said it will lay off more than 600 employees, a cost-cutting move that may help margins but also signals restructuring inside Microsoft’s professional networking unit. Panic in California as LinkedIn announces hundreds of layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors are focusing on concerns about mixed Xbox messaging, which may be weighing on sentiment around Microsoft’s gaming segment. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Slips on Mixed Xbox Messaging
• Negative Sentiment: Another report highlighted a Windows drivers issue that could hurt battery life on Windows 11 laptops, adding a small but negative product-quality overhang. “Blind Spot” in Windows Drivers Leads to Sub-Par Battery Life, Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Slips
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by EVP Amy Coleman, while modest, can also dampen sentiment when the stock is already under pressure. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) EVP Amy Coleman Sells 1,262 Shares

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $515.00 target price (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, New Street Research dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Thirty-nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $560.88.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).