Ninepoint Partners LP Buys 969 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Ninepoint Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 11.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,429 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 969 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 0.4% of Ninepoint Partners LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Ninepoint Partners LP’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $8,626,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 29.5% during the 2nd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,644 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,741 shares during the period. Security National Bank of SO Dak boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Security National Bank of SO Dak now owns 20,421 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,127,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,767,000. Finally, Savvy Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 74.0% during the 2nd quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 18,264 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $8,163,000 after acquiring an additional 7,765 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. DA Davidson downgraded Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $475.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Oppenheimer cut Microsoft from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Mizuho upped their target price on Microsoft from $450.00 to $480.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twenty-six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $503.03.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at $219,349,953.73. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.59, for a total transaction of $16,103,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 544,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $219,349,953.73. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 14,398 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.41, for a total value of $6,009,869.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 786,933 shares in the company, valued at $328,473,703.53. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 197,829 shares of company stock worth $80,966,837. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $423.03 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $421.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $425.32. Microsoft Co. has a 1 year low of $362.90 and a 1 year high of $468.35. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 27.39%.

Microsoft announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, September 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $60.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the software giant to buy up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.