Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Unloaded Sen. Shelley Moore Capito

Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-West Virginia) recently sold shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT). In a filing disclosed on February 13th, the Senator disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in Microsoft stock on January 3rd.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Aflac (NYSE:AFL) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Chubb (NYSE:CB) on 1/17/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) on 1/17/2025.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $410.54 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $430.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $423.13. Microsoft Co. has a twelve month low of $385.58 and a twelve month high of $468.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the company earned $2.93 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft Co. will post 13.07 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on MSFT shares. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $495.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, January 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Microsoft from $501.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $510.96.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.00, for a total transaction of $10,425,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 117,294 shares in the company, valued at $48,911,598. The trade was a 17.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.41, for a total value of $1,118,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 49,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,080,578.32. The trade was a 4.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,333,540. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 35.7% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Senator Capito

Shelley Moore Capito (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. Senate from West Virginia. She assumed office on January 3, 2015. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027. Capito (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the U.S. Senate to represent West Virginia. She won in the general election on November 3, 2020. Capito was first elected to the Senate in 2014, becoming the first female U.S. Senator in the state’s history. Prior to serving in the Senate, Capito was a member of the West Virginia House of Representatives from 1997 to 2001 and a member of the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2015. At the start of the 116th Congress, Capito was a member of the U.S. Senate committees on Appropriations, Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Environment and Public Works, and Rules and Administration. As of a 2014 analysis of multiple outside rankings, Capito is a more moderate right of center Republican Party vote. As a result, she may break with the Republican Party line more than her fellow members. Capito earned her bachelor’s degree from Duke University. After earning her M.Ed. from the University of Virginia, Capito was a college counselor and then director of an educational information center. She was the only Republican in the West Virginia congressional delegation until the 2010 elections and is the first Republican woman elected to Congress from West Virginia. Capito is a former chairwoman of the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues, as well as a member of the Congressional Arts Caucus. After an explosion responsible for the death of 29 coal workers, Capito founded the Congressional Coal Caucus. Prior to her election to the U.S. House, Capito served in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

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.