Eagle Global Advisors LLC Sells 2,227 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Eagle Global Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 163,691 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 2,227 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 3.2% of Eagle Global Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Eagle Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $84,784,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Applied Capital LLC FL raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.7% in the third quarter. Applied Capital LLC FL now owns 12,604 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,528,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 6,602 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,420,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Forbes Financial Planning Inc. boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Forbes Financial Planning Inc. now owns 1,960 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,015,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Balanced Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Balanced Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,235 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,100,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC now owns 11,373 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $5,891,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total value of $1,364,352.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president 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. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 owned 129,349 shares in the company, valued at $63,577,620.48. The trade was a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $401.14 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.98 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.39. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $344.79 and a 1 year high of $555.45. The company’s fifty day moving average is $468.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $496.24.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The business had revenue of $81.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.23 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 22.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Arete Research increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $710.00 to $730.00 in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. New Street Research raised their price objective on Microsoft from $670.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wedbush cut their target price on Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $596.95.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and notes highlighting Microsoft’s relatively durable free cash flow versus other hyperscalers are soothing investors worried about AI capex. Why Microsoft’s Cash Flow Sets It Apart from Other Hyperscalers
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s large, funded partner programs (notably the multibillion‑dollar IREN deal) are progressing — IREN secured financing and management says Microsoft prepayments/backing reduce execution risk for deploying AI capacity. That validates Microsoft’s ability to source external infrastructure without bearing all capex. IREN Earnings Were Ugly—Is a Beautiful Future Already Funded?
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional flows show some buyers stepping in (reported stake increases by managers), suggesting bargain hunting after the pullback. Manning & Napier Advisors boosts Microsoft stake
• Positive Sentiment: Government partnerships (UK deepfake detection) reinforce Microsoft’s regulatory/trust positioning for AI tools — a reputational plus that can support enterprise adoption. Britain to work with Microsoft to build deepfake detection system
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader hyperscaler capex is surging (reports of ~$700B combined spending), a structural trend that supports long‑term AI revenue but puts near‑term pressure on free cash flow across the group. Tech AI spending may approach $700 billion this year, but the blow to cash raises red flags
• Neutral Sentiment: Infrastructure market evolution (bitcoin miners pivoting to lease power to AI customers) creates more supplier options for Microsoft to scale capacity without owning all sites — strategic but execution‑dependent. The Great Pivot: Bitcoin Miners Are Becoming AI’s Landlords
• Negative Sentiment: Stifel’s rare downgrade (Hold) and analyst concern about Google/Anthropic competition for Azure weighed on sentiment earlier this week and triggered part of the sell‑off. Microsoft Stock Gets a Rare Downgrade. AI Competition Is Heating Up for Azure.
• Negative Sentiment: Specific execution worries — slower Copilot adoption and signs of softer Azure acceleration in the quarter — remain key risk points investors are watching; these were central to the post‑earnings sell‑off. Microsoft (MSFT) Stock: Should You Buy After 22% Plunge?
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/market psychology: an AI‑led rotation has erased large amounts of Big Tech market value, amplifying volatility for Microsoft even when fundamentals look mixed. Big Tech sees over $1 trillion wiped from stocks as fears of AI bubble ignite sell-off

About Microsoft

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).