Blue Edge Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Blue Edge Capital LLC bought 22,682 Microsoft shares worth approximately $8.46 million in the second quarter, making Microsoft 1% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the stock.
• Microsoft reported quarterly EPS of $4.74 and revenue of $90.01 billion, exceeding analyst expectations, while revenue rose 17.7% year over year.
• Microsoft increased its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $3.92 and a 0.7% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $592.15.

Blue Edge Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 22,682 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $8,461,000. Microsoft comprises 1.0% of Blue Edge Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 1.7% during the second quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,473 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $549,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 6.2% in the first quarter. Friedenthal Financial now owns 431 shares of the software giant's stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Sequent Planning LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.7% in the first quarter. Sequent Planning LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,382,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 3.8% in the second quarter. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC now owns 687 shares of the software giant's stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the first quarter. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC now owns 5,543 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,052,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $531.87 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.95 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.10. 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 current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The business's 50-day moving average is $506.64 and its 200-day moving average is $443.46.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during 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 firm's revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total transaction of $20,764,903.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their position. 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 a total of 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992 in the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism and earnings expectations: BMO Capital raised its Microsoft price target to $600 while maintaining an Outperform rating, citing potential upside for Azure. Bernstein also reiterated Outperform and lifted its target to $662. Analysts expect Microsoft’s Oct. 28 results to benefit from Azure demand and expanding enterprise AI adoption. Boeing and Microsoft AI platform article
• Positive Sentiment: AI and cloud growth remain the core bull case: Commentary points to robust Azure infrastructure demand, commercial customer commitments and Microsoft’s ability to monetize AI across enterprise markets. Its new Maia AI chips could eventually reduce reliance on outside processors and lower inference costs, although execution remains important. Microsoft Q1 outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Xbox and industry partnerships: Microsoft plans next-generation Xbox consoles and handheld devices for the 2027–2028 holiday seasons. Separately, its partnership with AMD is intended to improve Xbox performance, while Boeing’s new Dataliner aircraft-data platform uses Microsoft Azure AI Foundry and could support enterprise cloud adoption. Next-generation Xbox article
• Neutral Sentiment: Tokenized-stock objection: Microsoft joined Alphabet and Goldman Sachs in objecting to having its shares listed on a proposed OKX-ICE tokenized-stock platform. The move may limit potential trading exposure but does not directly affect operating results. Tokenized stocks article
• Negative Sentiment: U.K. AI data-center withdrawal: Microsoft withdrew as anchor tenant from Nscale’s planned Loughton, Essex, facility because grid-connection delays threatened the power supply. The decision highlights electricity and permitting constraints that could slow Azure capacity expansion and increase infrastructure costs. Microsoft U.K. data-center withdrawal
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and execution pressure: Britain’s competition watchdog is considering strategic-market-status rules for Microsoft’s business software, potentially increasing compliance requirements. Investors are also watching whether very large AI capital expenditures generate sufficient revenue and cash flow to justify the spending. U.K. regulation article
• Negative Sentiment: Broader AI-stock weakness: A selloff across AI-related equities and concerns about financing, power availability and uncertain returns are weighing on large technology stocks, including Microsoft. The company’s elevated valuation leaves less room for disappointment if Azure growth or earnings guidance falls short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Argus reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $525.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $636.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Forty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $592.15.

Microsoft 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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