Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stake Raised by Farmers National Bank

Farmers National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 52,455 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 5.7% of Farmers National Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Farmers National Bank’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $25,368,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft and Chevron announced a 20-year agreement to build Project Kilby, a 2.67-gigawatt natural-gas-powered facility in West Texas to support Microsoft’s AI and cloud data centers, reinforcing long-term demand for Microsoft’s AI infrastructure. Reuters article on Chevron signs power supply deal with Microsoft for Texas data center
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella called for broader AI access, lower-cost models, and more emphasis on trust and choice, which supports the case that Microsoft is positioning itself to compete beyond the expensive frontier-model race. Yahoo Finance article on Microsoft CEO Calls for Broader AI Access
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft was cited as part of a broader Big Tech pullback tied to AI sector rotation and regulatory overhang, suggesting the stock is being dragged by the group rather than by company-specific operating news. Yahoo Finance article on US Equity Indexes Mixed Amid Steep Decline in Communication Services
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple investor-rights firms announced or promoted a securities class action against Microsoft related to alleged Copilot-related disclosures, adding headline risk but not yet changing the underlying business outlook. GlobeNewswire article on MSFT Alert
• Negative Sentiment: New class-action headlines around Microsoft’s Copilot issues and alleged investor harm may weigh on sentiment by increasing legal uncertainty and keeping attention on prior stock declines. PR Newswire article on MSFT Stockholder Alert

Microsoft Stock Performance

MSFT opened at $367.34 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $356.28 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.73 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.87, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $412.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $424.28.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 21.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSFT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $505.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Raymond James Financial cut Microsoft from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. HSBC decreased their target price on Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Dbs Bank lowered their price target on Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Forty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $561.20.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total value of $1,812,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 47,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. This trade represents a 8.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).