Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Trading Down 2% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) fell 2% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $383.20 and last traded at $382.62. 3,718,191 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 19,252,358 shares. The stock had previously closed at $390.58.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. DA Davidson upgraded Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $425.00 to $450.00 in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.59.

Microsoft Stock Down 3.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $2.82 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $405.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $419.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 period last year, the business posted $2.93 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Microsoft Co. will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC raised 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 valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management grew its holdings in Microsoft by 144.4% during the 4th quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.