BankPlus Trust Department Decreases Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• BankPlus Trust Department trimmed its Microsoft stake by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 2,298 shares and leaving it with 34,521 shares worth about $16.7 million.
• Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.27 versus estimates of $4.06 and revenue of $82.89 billion, up 18.3% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, while analysts remain broadly bullish despite some target price cuts, with consensus rating still at “Moderate Buy.”

BankPlus Trust Department reduced its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,521 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 2,298 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 4.4% of BankPlus Trust Department's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. BankPlus Trust Department's holdings in Microsoft were worth $16,695,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. IRON Financial LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant's stock worth $3,372,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225 shares in the last quarter. PMG Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $36,347,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 949,901 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $493,860,000 after buying an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 18,340 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $9,499,000 after buying an additional 2,247 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $397.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. The trade was a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $407.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.03 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm's 50 day moving average is $397.60 and its 200 day moving average is $443.14. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $356.28 and a 1 year high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.46 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 21.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MSFT shares. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $650.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. HSBC dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. President Capital boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $586.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $515.00 price target (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, April 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $562.69.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continued to argue that Microsoft remains a long-term AI winner, with several notes saying the stock still looks undervalued and that its AI/Cloud thesis remains intact. Microsoft’s (MSFT) Q3 Revealed 3 Things that Matter for the AI Bull Case
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s testimony in the Musk v. Altman trial reinforced Microsoft’s early backing of OpenAI and its expected payoff from that investment, which some investors view as supportive of the company’s AI strategy. OpenAI to cap Microsoft revenue-sharing at $38 billion, The Information reports
• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI reportedly capped revenue-sharing payments to Microsoft at $38 billion through 2030, which may be read as a structural clarification that still preserves a major economic relationship while supporting OpenAI’s IPO path. Microsoft secures structural wins in OpenAI revenue cap deal, Wedbush says
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft was mentioned in broader AI-market commentary about whether AI spending is generating enough ROI, which adds to sentiment volatility but does not directly change fundamentals. Chamath Warns Companies Must Prove ROI from AI Within ‘500 Days’
• Neutral Sentiment: Several reports focused on Microsoft’s role in OpenAI’s founding and governance in the Musk lawsuit; these headlines keep the stock in the news, but the market impact is mostly indirect unless they lead to regulatory or contractual changes. How Much Power Did Microsoft Have Over OpenAI?
• Negative Sentiment: The biggest near-term overhang is the perception that Microsoft may have less upside from OpenAI than previously assumed, after reports that revenue-sharing is capped far below earlier projections. OpenAI to cap Microsoft revenue-sharing at $38 billion, The Information reports
• Negative Sentiment: Nadella’s testimony in the Musk trial also highlighted how closely Microsoft is tied to OpenAI’s governance fight, keeping legal and reputational risks in focus for investors. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella takes stand in Musk v. Altman trial

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft's product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

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