10,725,305 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Acquired by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired 10.7 million Microsoft shares valued at approximately $4.0 billion, making Microsoft its second-largest portfolio holding and representing about 0.14% of the company.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.74 and revenue of $90.01 billion, exceeding analyst expectations; revenue increased 17.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 42 “Buy” ratings and an average price target of $589.71, though investors continue to monitor AI spending, profit-margin pressure and regulatory scrutiny of Microsoft’s cloud and software businesses.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 10,725,305 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $4,000,706,000. Microsoft comprises approximately 3.1% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.14% of Microsoft as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,374,000. Sone Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,533,000. Trajan Wealth LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $103,382,000. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,112,000. Finally, Veratis Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth approximately $826,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $529.05 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $3.93 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $505.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $441.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%. Microsoft's quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This is a positive change from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.27%.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect Microsoft to remain the only major hyperscaler with positive free cash flow over the next year despite heavy AI investment. This reinforces confidence that the company can fund data-center expansion without substantial external financing. Microsoft Free Cash Flow Expected to Remain Positive
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft signed a 20-year agreement with NiSource for approximately 1,100 megawatts of power for an Indiana data-center campus beginning in 2028. Securing electricity supports future Azure capacity as grid constraints become a bottleneck for AI expansion. Microsoft Signs Power Deal With NiSource
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s custom Maia AI chips and reports that a new model achieved comparable or better performance than OpenAI’s system using a fraction of the computing power could eventually reduce reliance on expensive third-party GPUs and improve AI economics. Microsoft Wants to Make AI Cheaper
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are focused on Azure growth, Copilot adoption, AI monetization and capital expenditures ahead of earnings. Strong demand could support the shares, but the market wants evidence that revenue growth is translating into sustainable margins.
• Negative Sentiment: The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority is investigating Microsoft’s grip on business software and says Microsoft and Amazon Web Services may need to do more to address cloud-service barriers. Potential remedies could increase compliance costs or weaken customer-lock-in advantages. UK Regulator Targets Microsoft’s Business Software Grip
• Negative Sentiment: Questions remain over whether custom chips will deliver meaningful savings: AI infrastructure, power and data-center commitments are rising rapidly, while Microsoft is reportedly seeking substantial cost reductions in Azure. That creates concern about near-term free-cash-flow and margin pressure.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $522.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $512.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $589.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total value of $3,984,293.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 555,396 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $302,924,086.32. This represents a 1.30% 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

About Microsoft

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.

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