Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc.’s Largest Position

Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 86,408 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,832 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 7.4% of Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $44,755,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. University of Illinois Foundation purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 155.7% during the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 156 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $423.37 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $474.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $499.00. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $555.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market cap of $3.14 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 22.76%.

Trending Headlines about 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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Arete Research increased their price target on Microsoft from $710.00 to $730.00 in a report on Monday, October 27th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $640.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Wedbush cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Microsoft from $640.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $597.73.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,349 shares in the company, valued at $63,577,620.48. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 55,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,703,959.04. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft 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).