5 Best Dividend Paying Stocks To Buy Now

1. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 258
Dividend Yield as of September 26: 1.15%

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is an American multinational tech company that specializes in a wide range of computer software and consumer electronics. Recently, the company’s management showed confidence in its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The deal was proposed to enhance the company’s cloud-based gaming segment.

On September 20, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) declared a 10% hike in its quarterly dividend to $0.68 per share. This marked the company’s 16th consecutive year of dividend growth. As of September 26, the stock’s dividend yield came in at 1.15%.

On September 22, Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) to $354 with an Overweight rating on the shares, highlighting the company’s expanding solution portfolio. The firm also mentioned that the company is able to sustain strong demand.

At the end of Q2 2022, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) was the most popular stock among hedge funds, with 258 funds taking up investments in the company, according to Insider Monkey’s data. The stakes owned by these hedge funds hold a collective value of over $56 billion.

Baron Funds mentioned Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in its Q2 2022 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:

“Shares of Microsoft Corporation, a leading global provider of software solutions, declined 16.6% in the quarter along with the broader software group as well as due to growing concerns of a potential macro-driven slowdown. This is despite the company posting strong quarterly financial results and successfully absorbing headwinds from the war in Ukraine. The company had 21% revenue growth, 23% operating income growth, and 35% growth in Microsoft Cloud (all year-over-year in constant currency), which now represents 47% of total revenues.

As discussed above, we continue to believe Microsoft remains a durable and growing business as companies across all industries look to digitally transform, taking advantage of the continuously expanding solution set Microsoft has to offer.”

You can also take a look at 10 Best Dividend Growth Stocks to Buy Now and 10 Quality Stocks With Dividend Yields Over 2%

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