Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Down 1.5% Following Insider Selling

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s stock price traded down 1.5% during trading on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $397.16 and last traded at $397.36. 30,448,169 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 15% from the average session volume of 35,765,871 shares. The stock had previously closed at $403.41.

Specifically, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.45, for a total value of $1,031,125.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,968 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,434,201.60. This represents a 4.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $505.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Dbs Bank dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, June 1st. They issued a “market outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $502.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Forty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $561.20.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly considering a spinoff or major restructuring of its Xbox division, with layoffs and budget cuts expected, signaling trouble in a business that has been dragging on margins. Reuters report on Microsoft considering spinning out Xbox
• Negative Sentiment: Additional reports say Xbox is facing a “consistency problem” with game releases and operational issues, reinforcing concerns that the gaming segment is weighing on overall sentiment. TipRanks article on Xbox consistency issues
• Negative Sentiment: Wall Street commentary says Microsoft is also being hit by renewed skepticism around aggressive AI infrastructure spending, with investors questioning whether the huge capex cycle will produce fast enough returns. Barron’s on Microsoft AI spending pressure
• Negative Sentiment: Broader tech weakness and hedge-fund de-risking have also contributed to the stock’s decline, as investors rotate away from megacap growth names ahead of major market events. Yahoo Finance on hedge funds selling broader tech
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft continues to get support from its core AI and cloud story, including strong Azure demand and commentary from analysts who still view the stock as a long-term buy. Yahoo Finance on Microsoft as a long-term buy
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, underscoring financial strength, but this is unlikely to be the main short-term stock driver. Microsoft announces quarterly dividend

Microsoft Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $2.90 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.11. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $410.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $429.22.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.46 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MSFT. S&A Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 1st quarter valued at $1,039,000. E Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 47.1% in the 1st quarter. E Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,790 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,033,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the period. LFG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 30.2% in the 1st quarter. LFG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 25,640 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $9,491,000 after purchasing an additional 5,940 shares during the period. Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 1st quarter valued at $428,000. Finally, FAS Wealth Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 49,116 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $18,181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,497 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).