Waycross Investment Management Co Purchases 2,054 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Waycross Investment Management Co grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 28.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 9,393 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,054 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 2.0% of Waycross Investment Management Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Waycross Investment Management Co’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $3,504,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth about $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 0.9% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 64,375,360 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $24,013,297,000 after acquiring an additional 543,172 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $18,306,443,000. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 30.8% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 41,675,076 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $15,426,862,000 after acquiring an additional 9,814,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 10.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 29,323,744 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $10,852,884,000 after acquiring an additional 2,784,809 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.2%

MSFT stock opened at $531.33 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $510.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $437.69. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares in the company, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 150,314 shares of company stock valued at $75,404,992 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Tuesday. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $586.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday. Forty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $596.07.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive ahead of earnings. Oppenheimer raised its price target to $625 from $570, while Truist lifted its target to $600 from $575; both cited strong enterprise demand and sustained Azure growth. Oppenheimer raises Microsoft target ahead of earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street expects continued AI momentum, with Azure growth projected to accelerate toward 45% and Copilot adoption supporting longer-term monetization. Microsoft’s reported cloud backlog and a reported agreement for Anthropic to spend at least $45 billion on Microsoft cloud infrastructure also reinforce demand visibility. Azure AI growth ahead of earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft expanded its AI collaboration with Dayforce across human resources, finance and operations, potentially broadening enterprise use of Microsoft’s AI and cloud ecosystem. Dayforce expands AI collaboration with Microsoft
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft reports after the bell Wednesday. Analysts expect approximately $4.72 EPS and $90.69 billion in revenue, while options markets imply about a 5.09% post-earnings move. Traders are positioned around $555 calls and $460 puts, signaling substantial volatility rather than a clear direction. Microsoft earnings options outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is offering voluntary buyouts to roughly 60,000 employees across the U.S., Canada, India and the U.K. The move may reduce costs and redirect resources toward AI, but its scale raises concerns about restructuring, execution and the underlying pressure from heavy data-center investment. Microsoft offers voluntary buyouts to 60,000 employees
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also weighing rising AI infrastructure costs, capacity constraints and possible margin pressure. A reported delay affecting a Microsoft AI data-center project in the U.K. highlights the practical bottlenecks facing the company’s aggressive capital-spending strategy. Microsoft AI data-center constraints

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company’s principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.