Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Position Lifted by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 368,856 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 9,378 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 4.0% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $191,049,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. IRON Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,372,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at about $9,941,000. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 2.6% in 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 last quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 14.0% in the third quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 18,340 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,499,000 after buying an additional 2,247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $147,700,000 after buying an additional 11,770 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst commentary and broader tech-led market lift helped push MSFT higher after last week’s sell-off; the coverage framed the pullback as a buying opportunity. Why Microsoft Stock Topped the Market Today
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed how many paying Copilot customers it has — a concrete monetization datapoint that reassures investors about AI product revenue traction. Microsoft Finally Revealed How Many Paying Copilot Customers It Has. The Answer Was Shocking for More Reasons Than One.
• Positive Sentiment: Reports attribute part of MSFT’s gains to a key new hire meant to shore up AI efforts and execution — a governance/operational positive that calms investor nerves about execution risk. Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Gains Thanks in Part to New Hire
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum at OpenAI (where Microsoft is a major backer) shows ChatGPT growth accelerating vs. Google — supportive for Microsoft’s AI strategy and Azure demand. OpenAI Intensifies Race with Google as ChatGPT Returns to Higher Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox-related reports (next Xbox reportedly a gaming PC) provided a modest product narrative boost but are unlikely to move near-term earnings materially. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Rises Alongside Reports the Next Xbox Will Be a Gaming PC
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis arguing AI spending looks large on paper but is manageable helped calm some fears — frames capex as an investment with long-term payback rather than an immediate cash drain. Microsoft’s AI Spend Looks Scary, Until You Run The Numbers
• Negative Sentiment: Melius Research downgraded MSFT from Buy to Hold and cut its price target, citing concerns about AI capex and growth—this is a direct bearish analyst action pressuring sentiment. Here’s Why Melius Moved to the Sidelines on Microsoft Stock (MSFT)
• Negative Sentiment: Earlier downgrades (e.g., Stifel) and commentary that MSFT’s valuation now trades below legacy peers like IBM highlight investor worries about heavy AI CapEx and near-term margin pressure. Microsoft’s stock is now cheaper than IBM’s. What that says about the AI trade.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $414.12 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.08. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $466.97 and a 200 day moving average of $495.42.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts’ expectations of $80.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.23 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Melius Research set a $430.00 price objective on Microsoft in a research report on Monday. Phillip Securities upgraded Microsoft from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $650.00 to $600.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $591.95.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

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

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).