<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 66,330,000 shares,  a growth of 23.7% from the February 13th total of 53,630,000 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 22,750,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days.</p><h2>Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth</h2><ul><li>Microsoft’s AI Strategy Eases Analyst Concerns—Is It a Buy?</li></ul><p>MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald  reaffirmed an &#34;overweight&#34; rating and issued a $509.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler  reaffirmed an &#34;overweight&#34; rating and issued a $520.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush  reaffirmed an &#34;outperform&#34; rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $475.00 and set a &#34;buy&#34; rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Microsoft from $540.00 to $530.00 and set an &#34;overweight&#34; rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus price target of $510.43.</p><p><b>View Our Latest Report on MSFT</b></p><h2>Microsoft Trading Up 0.0 %</h2><ul><li>Occidental Petroleum: 4 Reasons to Love These Prices</li></ul><p>MSFT stock opened at $388.70 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.89 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.30, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.92. Microsoft has a twelve month low of $376.91 and a twelve month high of $468.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The business has a fifty day moving average of $411.64 and a 200-day moving average of $420.49. </p><p>Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The software giant reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $2.93 earnings per share.  As a group, equities research analysts expect that  Microsoft will post 13.08 EPS for the current year. </p><h2>Microsoft Dividend Announcement</h2><ul><li>Resilient Investing: 3 Stocks Built to Weather Market Volatility</li></ul><p>The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio  is presently 26.73%. </p><h2>Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microsoft</h2><p>A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in  Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,343,058,000.  International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in  Microsoft by 48,526.1% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 38,501,645 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $16,567,258,000 after acquiring an additional 38,422,466 shares during the period.  Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in  Microsoft by 34,643.3% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 16,837,278 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $7,096,913,000 after acquiring an additional 16,788,816 shares during the period.  Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in  Microsoft by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $35,316,535,000 after acquiring an additional 11,600,470 shares during the period.  Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in  Microsoft by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 684,071,705 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $288,336,224,000 after acquiring an additional 10,431,988 shares during the period. Institutional investors own  71.13% of the company's stock. </p><h2>About Microsoft</h2> (Get Free Report)<p>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.</p><h2>See Also</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Microsoft</li><li>How Technical Indicators Can Help You Find Oversold Stocks </li><li>Can TikTok Stock Picks Really Make You Rich?</li><li>What is MarketRank™? How to Use it</li><li>The &#34;Quality&#34; Rotation: Back to Basics Investing </li><li>3 Grocery Stocks That Are Proving They Are Still Essential </li><li>Occidental Petroleum: 4 Reasons to Love These Prices</li></ul><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Microsoft Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Microsoft, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Microsoft wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Microsoft currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

MSFT

<p>Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) experienced a significant increase in short interest, rising 23.7% to 66,330,000 shares as of February 28. This represents 0.9% of the company's shares sold short, with a days-to-cover ratio of 2.9 days. Analysts maintain a positive outlook, with a consensus price target of $510.43. Microsoft recently reported an EPS of $3.23, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.83, yielding 0.85%. Institutional investors hold 71.13% of the stock, reflecting strong interest in the company.</p>

- Microsoft Co. experienced a 23.7% increase in short interest in February, totaling 66,330,000 shares.  
- Analysts maintain a "Moderate Buy" rating for Microsoft, with a consensus price target of $510.43, while institutional investors hold 71.13% of the company's stock.  
- The company reported an EPS of $3.23 for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.83, reflecting a yield of 0.85%.

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest