Solid growth prospects offset its low yield

Article Excerpt

While Microsoft’s low yield may not immediately appeal to income-seeking investors, the stock remains a solid pick for your portfolio. The company began paying regular dividends in 2004 and has raised that rate each year since 2010. It’s upcoming purchase of videogame maker Activision will also give it more room to reward shareholders. MICROSOFT CORP. $276 is a buy for long-term gains. The company (Nasdaq symbol MSFT; High-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio; Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 7.5 billion; Market cap: $2.1 trillion; Dividend yield: 0.9%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Highest; www.microsoft.com) began operating in 1975 and is now the world’s largest computer software company. It’s main products are the Windows operating system and the Office suite of productivity programs. Microsoft last raised your quarterly dividend by 10.7% with the December 2021 payment, to $0.62 a share from $0.56. The new annual rate of $2.48 yields 0.9%. Starting in 2014, Microsoft shifted its focus from selling software as a one-time purchase to a cloud-based subscription model. That gave…