13,195 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Acquired by Compass Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Compass Wealth Management acquired 13,195 Microsoft shares worth approximately $4.92 million during the second quarter, while institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the company.
• Microsoft insiders sold 143,009 shares worth $71.4 million over the past 90 days, including substantial sales by executives Amy Hood and Judson Althoff; insiders retain just 0.03% ownership.
• Microsoft exceeded quarterly expectations with $4.74 in EPS and $90.01 billion in revenue, up 17.7% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $578.73 target price, and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share.

Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 13,195 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $4,922,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Vista Cima Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,226,000. Pacific Sun Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,132,000. Stevens Capital Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,556,000. Altiora Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,626,000. Finally, BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,647,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 143,009 shares of company stock worth $71,420,699. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MSFT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Microsoft from an "overweight" rating to a "negative" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $440.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $578.73.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft introduced Microsoft-Decision-1, an AI model it says makes decisions substantially faster than GPT-6 Sol. The launch reinforces Microsoft’s competitive position in enterprise AI and could support demand for Azure and Copilot services. Microsoft launches Microsoft-Decision-1
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and investor commentary remains bullish on Microsoft’s AI stack, Azure acceleration, Copilot adoption and a large reported backlog. Wells Fargo reportedly raised its price target to $725, while Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a Buy rating with a $600 target. Morgan Stanley rating
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is attempting to revive Windows and expand on-device AI with new Nvidia-powered Surface hardware, including the premium Surface Laptop Ultra. Local AI processing could strengthen the Windows ecosystem and stimulate higher-value PC sales. Surface Laptop Ultra
• Positive Sentiment: The company is nearing a $4 trillion market capitalization after a strong earnings beat, with revenue and earnings growth continuing to support the recent rally. The next major test is Microsoft’s expected October 28 earnings report. Microsoft approaches $4 trillion valuation
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s new Xbox division, focused on film, television, events and theme parks, could expand the reach of its gaming franchises, although the strategy is unlikely to materially affect near-term financial results. Microsoft forms new Xbox unit
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. suspension of Microsoft’s PERM green-card sponsorship program creates hiring and retention uncertainty, particularly for specialized AI and engineering workers. Investors are weighing potential compliance costs and the risk of an “AI brain drain.” U.S. suspends Microsoft green-card program
• Negative Sentiment: Italy launched an EU-backed antitrust investigation into Microsoft-owned game companies over virtual currencies, adding regulatory risk to the gaming business. Italy gaming investigation

Microsoft Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $535.07 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $553.72. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $501.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $434.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, gaming products and business solutions. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is best known for the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office productivity software. Microsoft is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, and serves consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

Microsoft's productivity and business offerings include Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, along with collaboration tools including Teams.

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