1,361 Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Bought by S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC

S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 34,125 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,361 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 4.1% of S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $17,503,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 315,653,206 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $117,744,959,000 after buying an additional 8,944,917 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% in the 2nd 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 worth $24,013,297,000 after buying an additional 543,172 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter valued at $18,306,443,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 12.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 46,694,778 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $17,418,076,000 after acquiring an additional 5,019,702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s free-cash-flow position may offer some reassurance: an analysis notes that several other major AI hyperscalers are generating negative free cash flow, while Microsoft is generating positive cash flow. Is Microsoft Getting Enough Credit for Better Free Cash Flow Compared to its Peers?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Microsoft plans to reduce the number of neocloud partners it uses, wind down rented AI capacity from Oracle, and declined a Texas data-center expansion with Nscale. This could help control costs and give Microsoft tighter oversight as it builds its own infrastructure, but the implications for capacity growth remain uncertain. Microsoft plans to use fewer neoclouds as AI buildout shows signs of strain
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may read the canceled or reduced AI-computing commitments as a sign that Microsoft is reassessing demand, project timing, or returns on its data-center spending. The shift comes as reports highlight construction delays and the rising cost of meeting a growing AI backlog, intensifying scrutiny of whether heavy investment will pay off. Microsoft is winding down Oracle deal to rent AI cloud capacity, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: Broader unease around AI spending and tech-market volatility may also weigh on MSFT, as investors question the scale of data-center investment relative to future cash returns. Microsoft and Oracle’s AI ambitions are suddenly a lot more expensive

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $530.61 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.05. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $559.15. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $516.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $440.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $92.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 41.17% and a return on equity of 31.28%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.13 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 20.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on MSFT shares. DA Davidson upped their price target on Microsoft from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. BNP Paribas Exane cut Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Friday, July 24th. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore upgraded Microsoft from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $609.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total transaction of $3,984,293.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 555,396 shares in the company, valued at $302,924,086.32. This represents a 1.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 135,504 shares of company stock valued at $68,138,024. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, and digital solutions for consumers, businesses, and public-sector organizations. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington.

Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.

Microsoft serves customers around the world through its products, online platforms, and network of business partners.