Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Up 0.7% – Should You Buy?

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) shot up 0.7% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $395.80 and last traded at $395.65. 4,285,578 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 23,002,182 shares. The stock had previously closed at $393.08.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $520.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.59.

Microsoft Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $2.93 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $408.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $419.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.36% and a net margin of 35.43%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.73%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microsoft

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BCK Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.8% in the third quarter. BCK Partners Inc. now owns 1,353 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $582,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,427 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,866,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,050 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its position in Microsoft by 35.7% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 95 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Sequent Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.3% in the third quarter. Sequent Asset Management LLC now owns 1,983 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $853,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.