AXQ Capital LP Purchases 7,606 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• AXQ Capital LP increased its Microsoft stake by 136.6% in the second quarter, purchasing 7,606 shares to bring its holdings to 13,176 shares valued at approximately $4.9 million.
• Institutional investors own 71.13% of Microsoft, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $596.07; 44 analysts rate the stock a Buy.
• Microsoft exceeded quarterly expectations with $4.89 in EPS and $92.28 billion in revenue, while raising its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share. However, insiders have sold roughly $75.4 million of stock over the past 90 days.

AXQ Capital LP boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 136.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,176 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 7,606 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 0.5% of AXQ Capital LP's holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. AXQ Capital LP's holdings in Microsoft were worth $4,915,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 64,375,360 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $24,013,297,000 after purchasing an additional 543,172 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $18,306,443,000. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 30.8% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 41,675,076 shares of the software giant's stock worth $15,426,862,000 after purchasing an additional 9,814,598 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 29,323,744 shares of the software giant's stock worth $10,852,884,000 after purchasing an additional 2,784,809 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on MSFT. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Microsoft from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. William Blair began coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Wolfe Research lowered Microsoft from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, September 28th. Forty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $596.07.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 transaction of $3,984,293.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 555,396 shares in the company, valued at $302,924,086.32. This represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $531.01 on Thursday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $511.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $437.96. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $551.15. The stock has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.57, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.71 by $0.18. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The firm had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.13 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft reported earnings of $4.89 per share versus the $4.71–$4.72 consensus and revenue of $92.28 billion, up 19% year over year and above estimates of approximately $90.6 billion. Net income increased 32%, while the company extended its streak of record quarterly revenue. Microsoft Beats Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Azure growth accelerated to 48%, generating approximately $33.2 billion in quarterly revenue. Stronger-than-expected cloud demand suggests Microsoft’s investments in artificial intelligence and Copilot-related services are beginning to translate into significant sales and profit growth. Microsoft Azure Revenue Surges
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed that commercial arrangements with OpenAI produced roughly $10 billion of revenue during the quarter, highlighting the value of the partnership but also the company’s substantial financial dependence on a single AI ecosystem. Microsoft Recorded $10 Billion in Revenue From OpenAI
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft lowered its 2026 capital-expenditure forecast to $170 billion from $175 billion, citing delays in third-party capacity. The reduction may ease cash-flow pressure, but it also raises concerns that infrastructure constraints could limit Azure growth and delay returns on AI investment. Microsoft Cuts Capex Forecast on AI Capacity Delays
• Negative Sentiment: The company is offering voluntary buyouts to roughly 60,000 employees while spending heavily on data centers. Although the effort could improve long-term efficiency, investors may view it as evidence that Microsoft is managing mounting AI-related costs. Rising interest rates also pose a valuation risk for the high-growth technology sector.

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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