Braun Stacey Associates Inc. Trims Stock Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Braun Stacey Associates Inc. trimmed its stake in Microsoft (MSFT) by 0.5% in Q4, selling 1,628 shares to hold 339,716 shares valued at $164.29 million, making MSFT 5.3% of the fund's portfolio and its third-largest position.
• Insider activity was mixed: EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares at $409.52 (an 8.2% reduction), while Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares at $397.35, raising his ownership by 6.34%.
• Microsoft beat quarterly expectations (EPS $4.14 vs. $3.86; revenue $81.27B, +16.7%), trades with a $3.14 trillion market cap and a consensus "Moderate Buy" target of $577.58, and is seeing near-term AI catalysts from new data centers and large enterprise/government deals.

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. decreased its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 339,716 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,628 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 5.3% of Braun Stacey Associates Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $164,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the first quarter valued at approximately $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 500.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 59,543,261 shares of the software giant's stock worth $30,840,432,000 after buying an additional 49,618,571 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant's stock worth $14,905,904,000 after buying an additional 29,906,791 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock worth $35,316,535,000 after buying an additional 11,600,470 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $422.79 on Monday. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $355.67 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.14 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $391.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $453.57.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The business had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $80.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.23 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fairwater AI data center in Wisconsin went live ahead of schedule, a tangible execution win that eases near‑term capacity concerns and signals Microsoft is accelerating AI infrastructure deployment — a direct positive for Azure AI revenue prospects. Microsoft stock jumps as AI data center goes live
• Positive Sentiment: Large enterprise partnerships and marketplace integrations broaden Azure adoption: Stellantis signed a five‑year AI/cloud deal and Expert.ai’s EidenAI Suite is now on Azure Marketplace — both expand addressable enterprise demand for Microsoft’s cloud + Copilot stack. Stellantis, Microsoft sign five-year partnership Expert.ai and Microsoft Italy announce collaboration
• Positive Sentiment: Government and regulatory adoption — the CFTC is using Microsoft Copilot/AI tools for surveillance, a sign that public‑sector adoption of Microsoft AI products is rising and provides a durable revenue cohort. CFTC Uses Microsoft AI Tools
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst moves are mixed: TD Cowen lowered its price target to $540 but kept a Buy rating (maintains bullish long‑term view despite trimming upside), while other firms have grown cautious — watch revisions for near‑term momentum. TD Cowen price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/earnings calendar: investors are watching fiscal Q3 results (Apr 29) for signs AI spend is translating into accelerating Azure revenue and Copilot monetization; near‑term volatility could persist into the print. Microsoft eyes AI execution, Azure growth
• Negative Sentiment: Industry capacity risk: Financial Times reports delays on a sizeable share of U.S. data‑center builds (affecting multiple players), underscoring supply‑chain and permitting risks that could constrain AI rollout timing and margin recovery. Data centre delays threaten to choke AI expansion
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish commentary and downside scenarios remain: some analysts and opinion pieces argue MSFT still faces near‑term growth/valuation risks (including calls for deeper corrections), so rallies could be met with profit‑taking until clearer proof of AI monetization appears. Microsoft: Don't Buy The Dip

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MSFT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group reduced their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $577.58.

About Microsoft

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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