Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by Synergy Asset Management LLC

Synergy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 289.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 617,591 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 459,175 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 11.2% of Synergy Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Synergy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $313,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth about $9,941,000. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 2.6% during the second quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 94,120 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $46,816,000 after buying an additional 2,373 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in Microsoft by 3.8% in the second quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 922,524 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $457,119,000 after buying an additional 33,382 shares during the last quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 14.0% in the third quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 18,340 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $9,499,000 after buying an additional 2,247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 4.3% during the third quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 285,163 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $147,700,000 after acquiring an additional 11,770 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total transaction of $6,266,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. The trade was a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total value of $19,967,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 461,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $239,402,668.08. This represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 54,100 shares of company stock valued at $27,598,872. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on MSFT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Microsoft to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 5th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $630.37.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $459.86 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $483.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $502.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.71, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.48. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 35.71%.The firm had revenue of $77.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.30 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.89%.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and Street optimism — Wedbush’s Dan Ives and others are positioning Microsoft as set for strong Q4 results tied to AI/cloud momentum, helping lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Dan Ives: Very Strong Q4 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Broker reaffirmation — Morgan Stanley kept an Overweight rating and high $650 target based on survey data showing rising enterprise software spend, supporting longer‑term upside expectations. Morgan Stanley Overweight
• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI monetization boost — OpenAI’s worldwide rollout of the lower‑cost ChatGPT Go subscription expands the addressable market for AI services where Microsoft has strategic exposure, lifting revenue hopes. OpenAI ChatGPT Go Worldwide
• Positive Sentiment: Data‑center expansion/community plan — News of a $500M–$1B Michigan data‑center push and Microsoft’s “community‑first” messaging shows continued capex to support Azure/AI growth, which investors view as reinforcing future revenue streams despite near‑term costs. Michigan Data Center Investment
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical/short‑term rebound thesis — Some analysts note MSFT is oversold and could see a technical bounce ahead of earnings, which supports trading interest but is not a fundamental catalyst. Zacks: Ripe for Turnaround
• Neutral Sentiment: Minor operational housekeeping — The company closed some on‑campus libraries, a small cost/real‑estate move that got attention but is unlikely to materially affect earnings. MSFT Shuts Libraries
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory probe into Activision Blizzard — Italy opened investigations into alleged “misleading and aggressive” in‑game purchase practices for Call of Duty Mobile and Diablo Immortal, creating reputational and potential financial risk for MSFT’s gaming unit. Italy Investigates Activision
• Negative Sentiment: Legal risk from Musk trial — A judge cleared Elon Musk’s suit against OpenAI and Microsoft to proceed to a jury trial in April, introducing headline legal overhang and potential distraction/costs. Musk Trial Moves Forward
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory scrutiny and analyst trim — Switzerland opened a probe into Microsoft’s licensing fees and Barclays lowered its price target, both adding near‑term headwinds to sentiment amid capex worries and noted insider selling. Swiss Probe into Licensing Fees

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).