Microsoft Corp’s “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at Nomura (MSFT)

Posted by: Hasmir Abdula Posted date: March 13, 2013 In: Analyst Articles - US, Investing

Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by analysts at Nomura in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday. They currently have a $32.00 price target on the stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Analysts at Longbow Research reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft Corp in a research note to investors on Tuesday. They now have a $33.00 price target on the stock. Separately, analysts at TheStreet reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft Corp in a research note to investors on Tuesday. Finally, analysts at MKM Partners cut their price target on shares of Microsoft Corp from $28.00 to $27.00 in a research note to investors on Monday. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.

Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, six have assigned an overweight rating, and sixteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. The company currently has an average rating of “overweight” and a consensus target price of $32.95.

Microsoft Corp traded up 0.14% on Wednesday, hitting $27.95. Microsoft Corp has a 1-year low of $26.26 and a 1-year high of $32.95. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $27.78. The company has a market cap of $234.1 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34.

Microsoft Corp last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 24th. The company reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $21.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Microsoft Corp will post $2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which is scheduled for Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th.

Microsoft Corporation is engaged in developing, licensing and supporting a range of software products and services.

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