Broadleaf Partners LLC Has $26.61 Million Stock Holdings in Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Broadleaf Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 63,139 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 830 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 6.2% of Broadleaf Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Broadleaf Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $26,613,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 27.0% during the 1st quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 1,016 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.3% during the second quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 12,658 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $5,658,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 410.4% during the third quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,144,000 after purchasing an additional 2,138 shares in the last quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 16.4% during the third quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 97,894 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $41,885,000 after purchasing an additional 13,793 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,773,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $474.96 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.53 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.03. Microsoft Co. has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $480.42. The company’s fifty day moving average is $428.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $418.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The software giant reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $70.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $68.54 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.94 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.66%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total value of $1,389,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,930 shares in the company, valued at $20,339,590. This represents a 6.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $436.05, for a total transaction of $32,703,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 476,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,995,413.95. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 135,743 shares of company stock worth $60,224,683. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Westpark Capital restated a “hold” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $480.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $515.68.

Microsoft 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.