Simplicity Wealth LLC Trims Stake in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Simplicity Wealth LLC decreased its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 38.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 55,286 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 34,238 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 1.7% of Simplicity Wealth LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Simplicity Wealth LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $28,635,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. University of Illinois Foundation bought a new stake in Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Westend Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 71.2% during the third quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total transaction of $6,266,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,703,959.04. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on MSFT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. Melius Research set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $615.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $590.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $591.95.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major private-market validation for the AI ecosystem could benefit Microsoft as a cloud and AI infrastructure provider — Anthropic’s new $380B valuation (which includes investments tied to Microsoft) signals strong enterprise demand for AI models and likely more backend cloud consumption. Anthropic Valuation Hits $380 Billion as Enterprise AI Demand Explodes
• Positive Sentiment: Citi reaffirmed a Buy on MSFT with a $635 price target — a bullish institutional view that supports the long‑term AI/cloud thesis despite recent sentiment-driven weakness. Microsoft: Buy Rating Reaffirmed on Undervalued AI and Cloud Growth Drivers Despite Sentiment-Driven Sell-Off
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is leading industry efforts on “digital trust” with other large tech firms (Trusted Tech Alliance), a reputational win that may ease enterprise sales cycles for security‑sensitive customers. Microsoft, Ericsson lead global tech alliance for digital trust
• Positive Sentiment: R&D/infra innovation: reports that Microsoft is exploring superconducting power lines for AI data centers point to potential long‑term efficiency gains and differentiation for its hyperscale buildout. Microsoft Explores Superconducting Power to Boost AI Data Centers
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft AI chief’s bold timeline for rapid white‑collar automation (12–18 months) fuels debate — it underscores market opportunity but also raises labor/regulatory concerns that could shape adoption rates. Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months — for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Market technicians and contrarian pieces argue MSFT looks oversold/potentially bottoming after the post‑earnings drop — these narratives can attract buyers, but timing is uncertain. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) Price Forecast: Bottoming at Channel Support?
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk increased today: the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has issued investigative demands and questioned Microsoft’s rivals about its AI/cloud licensing and business practices — this escalation is a clear near‑term negative catalyst. US FTC ramps up scrutiny of Microsoft over AI, cloud practices, questions rivals, Bloomberg reports
• Negative Sentiment: Investor rotation and positioning: several funds disclosed cuts to MSFT stakes this week, and commentary highlights investor concern over heavy CapEx for AI infrastructure and concentration risk tied to OpenAI—factors that have pressured the stock. PRIMECAP Management Co cuts Microsoft stake by 1.1M
• Negative Sentiment: Critics argue Microsoft has underperformed some AI peers and that capex intensity may strain free cash flow, reinforcing sentiment‑driven selling pressure. Microsoft Is Spending, Investors Are Losing

Microsoft Stock Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $401.32 on Monday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $460.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $492.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $2.98 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.10, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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 issued 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 is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 22.76%.

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).