1,920,498 Shares in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Purchased by Cibc World Market Inc.

Key Points

• CIBC World Market purchased 1.92 million Microsoft shares valued at approximately $716.4 million, making Microsoft its 18th-largest holding. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 71.13% of the company.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating from 48 analysts and an average price target of $589.71. Microsoft recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up 17.7% year over year.
• Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share, or $3.92 annually, while investors continue to assess whether heavy AI infrastructure spending will translate into sustainable margins and free-cash-flow growth.

Cibc World Market Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,920,498 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $716,384,000. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.1% of Cibc World Market Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its stake in Microsoft by 4.0% during the second quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 229,490 shares of the software giant's stock worth $85,604,000 after buying an additional 8,773 shares during the period. Markel Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% during the first quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 537,630 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $199,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,921,677 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,562,197,000 after acquiring an additional 537,634 shares during the period. Taylor Securities Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,616,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 138.8% in the 1st quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,356,359 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $502,077,000 after acquiring an additional 788,297 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $660.00 target price on Microsoft in a research report on Monday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, CLSA restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $589.71.

Microsoft News Summary

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.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $3,984,293.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 555,396 shares of the company's stock, 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. Insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock valued at $75,404,992 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $529.05 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.93 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72. 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 firm's 50-day moving average is $505.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $440.59.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

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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