Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Holdings Lessened by Westwind Capital

Westwind Capital cut its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,090 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 2,031 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 3.1% of Westwind Capital’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Westwind Capital’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $12,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Montgomery Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Frankly Finances LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the second quarter worth $37,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the second quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Fiduciary Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 37.4% in the second quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total transaction of $20,764,903.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 142,809 shares of company stock valued at $72,114,646. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $533.16 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.96 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.83, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s fifty day moving average is $517.80 and its 200 day moving average is $441.10. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $559.15. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.28% and a net margin of 41.17%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.13 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors 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%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Evercore raised shares of Microsoft from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $650.00 price target (up from $610.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $609.54.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft and IBM introduced Imagine Enterprise, a platform combining IBM’s library of more than 6,000 AI agents with Microsoft’s cloud, data and security tools. The partnership could help drive enterprise demand for Microsoft’s AI and cloud services. IBM and Microsoft Announce a New AI Agent Platform Designed for Industry-Specific Transformation
• Positive Sentiment: A five-year partnership with Ohio State University will apply Microsoft’s cloud and AI technology to healthcare, research and education, adding another potential customer and use case. Ohio State and Microsoft announce five-year strategic partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft reportedly urged the administration to drop a proposed ban on Chinese data-center technology, warning that restrictions could complicate data-center deployment. The outcome could affect equipment access and rollout timing. Microsoft presses Trump to scuttle expected ban on Chinese data-center technology
• Negative Sentiment: Anthropic unveiled workplace tools that could compete with Microsoft Office, including spreadsheet-related capabilities. The move raised concerns about competition in Microsoft’s enterprise software business. Anthropic unveils office suite to challenge Microsoft
• Negative Sentiment: A hot inflation report and rising bond yields weighed on the broader market, creating an additional headwind for technology shares. Stock market coverage on inflation and technology shares

Microsoft Profile

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.