Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Price Target Lowered to $470.00 at BMO Capital Markets

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) had its price target reduced by BMO Capital Markets from $490.00 to $470.00 in a research note published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the software giant’s stock.

MSFT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Westpark Capital initiated coverage on Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson raised Microsoft from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $425.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $475.00 price objective (down from $500.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $499.97.

Microsoft Stock Down 3.7 %

Shares of MSFT opened at $371.61 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market cap of $2.76 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.92, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $390.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $413.52. Microsoft has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $468.35.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $3.15 by $0.08. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.43% and a return on equity of 33.36%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.93 EPS. Analysts predict that Microsoft will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business 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 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 53.8% in the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 144.4% in the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 110 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

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.