6,029 Shares in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Bought by Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV

Key Points

• Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV purchased 6,029 Microsoft shares worth approximately $2.25 million, making Microsoft its 14th-largest holding and representing about 1.9% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with 42 Buy ratings, four Holds and two Sells; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a target price of $589.71.
• Microsoft exceeded quarterly expectations with $4.74 in EPS and $90.01 billion in revenue, while revenue rose 17.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share, or $3.92 annually.

Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 6,029 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $2,249,000. Microsoft accounts for about 1.9% of Paradigm Capital Management LLC NV's portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MSFT. Front Street Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $3,587,000. Womack Financial LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,689,000. Peak Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,012,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,360,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $329,187,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Microsoft from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $530.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Citigroup increased their price objective on Microsoft from $600.00 to $636.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. William Blair started coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 5th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $550.00 price objective 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 issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $589.71.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $529.05 on Monday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $553.72. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.93 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.10. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $505.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $441.16.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm's 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. This represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 150,314 shares of company stock valued at $75,404,992 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft News Roundup

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.

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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