Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Position Lifted by Elevatus Welath Management

Elevatus Welath Management increased its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 40,684 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,390 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 5.4% of Elevatus Welath Management’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest position. Elevatus Welath Management’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $19,676,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. IRON Financial LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 23.2% during the 3rd quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $3,372,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225 shares during the period. Wellington Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $9,941,000. PMG Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $36,347,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares during the period. Finally, Weaver Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 14.0% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp reduced their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $615.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Benchmark started coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $588.97.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft pledged a major strategic buildout in Japan — a $10 billion, multi‑year plan to fund AI data centers, cybersecurity and workforce training with partners including SoftBank and Sakura Internet, underpinning long‑term cloud/A.I. revenue opportunities and local partnerships. Microsoft to invest $10 billion in Japan for AI and cyber defence expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft rolled out multiple proprietary AI models and signaled it will build frontier models in‑house — a strategic shift to reduce dependence on partners and capture more of the AI stack (product control, margins and IP). This supports the long‑term AI revenue thesis. Microsoft building its own high-powered AI models as it looks to slash dependence on OpenAI
• Positive Sentiment: Management says Copilot sales targets were met after changing the go‑to‑market approach (moving to paid/subscription rather than broad bundling), a sign of product monetization gaining traction. That helps offset concerns about adoption. Microsoft hits Copilot sales goals after strategy shift – Bloomberg
• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark initiated coverage / and some street notes raised targets (coverage and a $675 price target were reported), providing analyst support that could lift sentiment if follow‑through occurs. Microsoft Charts $10 Billion of Outlays in AI-Eager Japan
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft announced local partnerships and community programs (e.g., Victoria University datacenter academy) that support talent pipeline and social license for datacenter expansion — constructive but longer‑dated impact. Microsoft Corp (MSFT) Partners with Victoria University on Datacenter Community Pledge
• Neutral Sentiment: Smaller ecosystem developments (Sakura Internet confirming talks, local partners’ stock moves) amplify the Japan story but are execution‑dependent; useful context for investors tracking regional rollout. SAKURA Internet Confirms Exploratory AI Cloud Collaboration Talks With Microsoft Japan
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly performance and commentary have disappointed some investors — headlines describe a Q1 “slide” and the worst quarterly drop since 2008 for MSFT, feeding the narrative of short‑term weakness and valuation re‑rating. That continues to pressure the stock. After Microsoft’s Q1 Slide, Are the Bulls Still On Board?
• Negative Sentiment: Several large funds / billionaires have trimmed MSFT positions in recent 13F disclosures (D.E. Shaw, Steve Cohen, Dan Loeb), signaling some institutional profit‑taking amid concerns over cloud supply constraints and guidance — a headwind for near‑term flows. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): Billionaire Steve Cohen Trims Position
• Negative Sentiment: Security/product risks surfaced (reports on “AI recommendation poisoning”) and ongoing execution demands for in‑house frontier models add operational risk and could temper upside if issues emerge. AI Recommendation Poisoning: Why Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Is Fighting So Hard

Microsoft Stock Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $373.46 on Monday. 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 market capitalization of $2.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $400.76 and its 200 day moving average is $462.28. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $344.79 and a twelve month high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.23 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 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).