15,736 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Acquired by Ames National Corp

Key Points

• Ames National Corp acquired 15,736 Microsoft shares worth approximately $5.87 million, making Microsoft 3.2% of its portfolio and its seventh-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with revenue up 17.7% year over year to $90.01 billion and EPS of $4.74, exceeding analyst expectations. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share, while analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating.
• Investor focus remains on Azure growth, AI monetization and rising data-center costs. Microsoft’s AI infrastructure investments and custom-chip strategy could improve long-term economics, but regulatory scrutiny and potential margin pressure remain key risks.

Ames National Corp bought a new position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 15,736 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $5,870,000. Microsoft accounts for 3.2% of Ames National Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,473 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 6.2% in the first quarter. Friedenthal Financial now owns 431 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $160,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Sequent Planning LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Sequent Planning LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,382,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC now owns 687 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC now owns 5,543 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,052,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Key Stories 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.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $529.05 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $349.20 and a 52-week high of $553.72. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $505.53 and a 200 day moving average of $440.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.93 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.10.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.65 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Melius Research set a $665.00 price objective on Microsoft and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. William Blair started coverage on Microsoft in a report on Monday, October 5th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Microsoft from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $530.00 to $575.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $589.71.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. This represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 150,314 shares of company stock valued at $75,404,992 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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