Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is Capital Planning LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Capital Planning LLC lowered its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 53,905 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,511 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 6.5% of Capital Planning LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Capital Planning LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $19,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC now owns 431 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC now owns 697 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $337,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,453,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Better Money Decisions LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.6% during the second quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,740,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Down 1.9%

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $390.34 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $399.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $408.91. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $2.90 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.23, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.13.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.46 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $650.00 to $625.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $646.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday. Finally, China Renaissance decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Forty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $556.37.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Morgan Stanley, Bernstein, Truist, and CLSA remained constructive on Microsoft, with reports calling the stock deeply undervalued and setting price targets well above current levels. Microsoft has 3 secret weapons that could drive its stock 50% higher, analyst says
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft expanded its strategic partnership with Mistral AI, adding another way to grow its cloud and AI ecosystem in Europe and regulated industries. Microsoft to fund Mistral’s European AI expansion in multibillion-dollar deal
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft also deepened AI-related ties through new commitments to the DOE’s “Genesis Mission,” reinforcing its role in major public-sector AI infrastructure projects. Microsoft commits $60M to ‘Genesis Mission’ to help power Dept. of Energy’s AI-for-science push
• Positive Sentiment: Reports highlighted record data-center demand led by hyperscalers including Microsoft, suggesting its AI infrastructure buildout remains robust despite the selloff. Sorry, AI Bears: Meta, Microsoft, and Google Lead Record Data Center Demand
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s upcoming July 29 earnings report is the next major catalyst, with Wall Street focused on Azure growth, AI margins, and whether heavy capex is starting to bite.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles noted strong buy-the-dip interest from retail investors, but this is sentiment-driven rather than a direct business update.
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern is growing that Microsoft’s elevated AI spending is becoming an overhang, potentially pressuring near-term profitability and limiting upside. Microsoft Q4 Earnings Preview – Oppenheimer Says Demand Is Healthy, ‘But Elevated Capex Remains an Overhang’ on MSFT Stock
• Negative Sentiment: New securities-fraud class-action headlines tied to alleged AI/Copilot disclosure issues are adding another layer of uncertainty for Microsoft investors. MSFT Shareholder Alert: Microsoft Corporation Securities Class Action Lawsuit – Investors with Losses May Contact Levi & Korsinsky

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate 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).