95,000 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Bought by Ally Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Ally Financial bought 95,000 Microsoft shares worth approximately $35.4 million during the second quarter, making Microsoft its third-largest holding at 4.6% of the portfolio. Other institutional investors also added positions, with institutions and hedge funds owning 71.13% of MSFT.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with earnings per share of $4.74 and revenue of $90.01 billion, surpassing analyst expectations and marking 17.7% year-over-year revenue growth. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $589.71. However, investors are monitoring rising AI infrastructure costs, potential margin pressure and U.K. regulatory scrutiny of Microsoft’s cloud and business-software operations.

Ally Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 95,000 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $35,437,000. Microsoft makes up approximately 4.6% of Ally Financial Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Winmill & CO. Inc. acquired a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $289,000. ICONIQ Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $915,000. Meritage Group LP purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $476,963,000. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $5,885,000. Finally, Maxi Investments CY Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,528,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of 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 company's 50 day moving average is $505.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $440.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $3.93 trillion, a PE 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 quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company's revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.65 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

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.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, October 5th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 5th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $660.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $525.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $589.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 555,396 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $302,924,086.32. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following 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 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 sold a total of 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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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