Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is HF Advisory Group LLC’s 5th Largest Position

HF Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 26.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,494 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,452 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 2.1% of HF Advisory Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. HF Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $6,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at about $50,664,631,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 56,160.8% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 60,116,384 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,073,486,000 after buying an additional 60,009,531 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the first quarter worth about $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 500.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 59,543,261 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $30,840,432,000 after buying an additional 49,618,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $14,905,904,000 after acquiring an additional 29,906,791 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $390.49 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $555.45. The stock has a market cap of $2.90 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $406.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $417.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th 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, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, April 24th. Arete Research increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on Microsoft from $595.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $560.86.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft launched a new AI deployment business, Microsoft Frontier Company, backed by $2.5 billion and staffed with about 6,000 engineers and industry experts to help enterprises select, implement, and improve AI tools. Investors are viewing this as a way to accelerate Azure and Copilot adoption while monetizing the enterprise AI buildout. Microsoft launches its own AI deployment company with $2.5 billion commitment
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlighted Microsoft as a top AI and growth stock, while others said the market is rotating from semiconductors back toward software. That is helping sentiment around MSFT as investors look for higher-quality AI beneficiaries with recurring enterprise revenue. Microsoft launches firm to help companies adopt AI with $2.5 billion
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is also reported to be overhauling Copilot to make its AI assistant more useful and easier to justify for customers. That could improve adoption, but it also underscores that AI products must now prove their value. Microsoft’s Copilot Reset Shows AI Tools Must Now Prove Their Worth
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also a new undersea cable partnership with Lightstorm to expand India-Southeast Asia connectivity, plus a report that enterprise customers continue to adopt Microsoft’s AI and cloud services. These are strategically helpful, but not immediate catalysts. Microsoft partners with Singapore’s Lightstorm to build India-Southeast Asia undersea cable
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment is still being held back by Microsoft’s weak recent stock performance, with articles noting its worst month in more than 25 years and renewed debate about whether the selloff is creating a buying opportunity. Microsoft Had Its Worst Month in More Than 25 Years. Should Investors Buy the Crash?
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is also facing class-action securities litigation over alleged misrepresentations during the class period, which adds a legal overhang and may keep some investors cautious. Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman LLC Urges Microsoft Corporation Investors to Act: Class Action Filed Alleging Investor Harm
• Negative Sentiment: Other reports said Microsoft may cut thousands of jobs and that investors are questioning whether its massive AI capital spending can generate enough returns. That uncertainty is weighing on the stock despite the company’s strong long-term fundamentals. Microsoft eyes another wave of layoffs that could hit 5,000 workers next week

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were 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 $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company 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).