63,164 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Bought by Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Clear Harbor Asset Management bought 63,164 Microsoft shares worth approximately $23.6 million, making Microsoft 1.5% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the company.
• Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with adjusted earnings of $4.74 per share and revenue of $90.01 billion, up 17.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with 42 Buy ratings and a consensus price target of $589.71 versus the reported share price of $529.05. However, CEO Satya Nadella and other insiders have sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 63,164 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $23,561,000. Microsoft makes up 1.5% of Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Frankly Finances LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 37.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, Glynn Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 34.2% in the 2nd quarter. Glynn Capital Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.9%

MSFT stock opened at $529.05 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.93 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.46, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $349.20 and a one year high of $553.72. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $505.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $440.59.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect 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%. This is a positive change from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MSFT. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $660.00 price target on Microsoft in a research report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $525.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays increased their price objective on Microsoft from $512.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $589.71.

More Microsoft News

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 news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. This represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 555,396 shares in the company, valued at $302,924,086.32. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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 ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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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