Copeland Capital Management LLC Purchases 4,196 Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its position in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 60,473 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,196 shares during the quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $22,740,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Monumental Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft during the first quarter worth $28,000. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 534.5% during the second quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 184 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $601,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the third quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 89.0% during the third quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $406.12, for a total value of $1,341,414.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 570,826 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $231,823,855.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $406.12, for a total transaction of $1,341,414.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 570,826 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $231,823,855.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 21,955 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $403.96, for a total value of $8,868,941.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 159,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,538,265.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,070,258 shares of company stock valued at $30,690,456 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $413.64 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.07 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $415.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $383.26. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $275.37 and a 1-year high of $430.82.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The software giant reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $62.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $61.14 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 38.40% and a net margin of 36.27%. Microsoft’s revenue was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.32 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Microsoft Co. will post 11.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $455.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $430.52.

Microsoft Company 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.