Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s Largest Position

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lowered its stake in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,306,887 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 210,577 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 2.7% of Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned 0.06% of Microsoft worth $1,619,562,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $9,625,201,000. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 215,874,152 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $68,162,263,000 after acquiring an additional 5,762,902 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 28,987,007 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,152,647,000 after acquiring an additional 2,456,190 shares during the last quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $679,928,000. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in Microsoft by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 21,375,375 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,749,275,000 after purchasing an additional 1,796,956 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other news, major shareholder Corp Microsoft sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.95, for a total transaction of $1,950,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,677,398 shares in the company, valued at $22,770,926.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 3,303 shares of the company’s 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 owns 570,826 shares in the company, valued at $231,823,855.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Corp Microsoft sold 1,000,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.95, for a total value of $1,950,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,677,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,770,926.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,025,258 shares of company stock worth $12,160,356. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Microsoft from $480.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $440.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $465.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $452.61.

Microsoft Stock Up 2.2 %

Microsoft stock opened at $406.66 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.02 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.21, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.24. Microsoft Co. has a fifty-two week low of $303.40 and a fifty-two week high of $430.82. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $413.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $389.54.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The software giant reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $61.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.86 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 37.54% and a net margin of 36.43%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.45 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 11.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 25.97%.

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.