CPC Advisors LLC Acquires 18,506 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

CPC Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 140.5% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 31,682 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,506 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 1.7% of CPC Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. CPC Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $16,410,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft in the first quarter worth $18,733,827,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $14,905,904,000 after purchasing an additional 29,906,791 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $350,712,742,000 after buying an additional 13,691,572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $35,316,535,000 after buying an additional 11,600,470 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT opened at $423.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.14 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $474.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $499.00.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The business had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $80.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total value of $6,266,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares in the company, valued at $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total transaction of $1,364,352.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares in the company, valued at $26,703,959.04. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and upgrades: several outlets and analysts have reiterated buy/overweight ratings and lofty price targets (median ~$600), and some investors and commentators view the pullback as an attractive entry after the drop. This supports the thesis that long‑term growth expectations remain intact. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on Earnings Reaction
• Positive Sentiment: Seeking Alpha upgrades: bullish write‑ups argue MSFT is now the “cheapest” of the Magnificent Seven and recommend buying into the weakness — a narrative that can attract value buyers and stabilize price. Microsoft: It Becomes The Cheapest Stock In The Magnificent 7 (Rating Upgrade)
• Positive Sentiment: Perplexity investment: coverage of Microsoft’s ~$750M deal/relationship with Perplexity highlights another pathway to monetize AI and expand Azure usage — a constructive catalyst if it boosts consumption without eroding margins. Following a $750 Million Deal with Perplexity, Is Microsoft Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
• Neutral Sentiment: How Microsoft is scaling AI: coverage explains the company’s long‑term AI strategy (Azure, OpenAI ties, product integrations). This is background positive for structural growth, but it doesn’t immediately resolve near‑term margin/capex concerns. How Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) Is Scaling AI Into Its Next Growth Engine
• Neutral Sentiment: Options/put strategies: some commentators argue the share price and implied volatility make selling short‑dated puts an attractive income play — a sign traders see limited immediate downside or want to get long at discounts. This is a market‑structure reaction rather than company fundamentals. Shorting Microsoft Puts Looks Very Attractive To Value Investors In MSFT Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings fallout and AI capex worries: social and analyst reaction centers on a >10% selloff after the quarter — despite revenue/earnings beats — because Azure growth decelerated and management signaled moderated guidance while AI capex spiked (publicized multibillion AI spending). That mismatch (big spending vs. near‑term returns) is the main reason the stock is lower. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on Earnings Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/product issues: reports of a resurfacing hibernation bug and unexpected Xbox permabans have created negative headlines this morning — small on their own but contributing to the negative sentiment mix. Microsoft Stock Falters on Hibernation Fix Flop, Unexpected Xbox Permaban
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sales & heavy options volume: recent disclosures show substantial insider selling by senior executives and unusually high options activity — signals some stakeholders are taking chips off the table, which can weigh on sentiment even if strategic. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on Earnings Reaction

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Daiwa Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $640.00 to $630.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $660.00 to $635.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $641.00 target price (down from $645.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. Finally, HSBC lowered their price objective on Microsoft from $667.00 to $588.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $597.73.

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).