Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has announced plans to raise its current dividend payment to its shareholders from 20 cents per quarter, to 23 cents. This raise will equal about 15% and provides the company with a yield of 2.9%.
Reuters reported, that this marks the seventh time Microsoft has raised its dividend payment, since the dividend program was introduced in 2004. Although Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a tech giant in terms of worth, its stock has suffered a stagnation of price for several years now.
While the share price remained almost flat for the day, it did drop a tiny bit. However, this drop only mirrors that of the market as a whole. Microsoft has lost one quarter of a percentage point in after hours trading.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), which is Microsoft’s chief competitor on all accounts, yields approximately 2.5%, which means that Microsoft pays more to its shareholders than Apple. This only proves the point that even though Microsoft pays more in dividends, Apple’s stock is worth more, as it has surged upward in recent years, and reached $700 per share in after hours trading yesterday.
While Bill Gates’ company is a powerhouse in the tech industry, it would seem that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is steadily eating away at Microsoft’s market share. Windows powered devices are becoming less used in the executive offices of major corporations, and devices like Apple’s iPad are taking their place. Could Microsoft’s days as a daily name on the tongues of techies and businessmen alike, be numbered? I think it’s too early to write them off just yet, as we recently reported they have teamed up with Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) to launch the new Lumia 920, which is powered by Windows Phone 8 software. This move to the mobile world, along with the launch of the new Surface Tablet line of Windows powered tablets, could be just the thing to make Microsoft boom once again.
