Centaurus Financial Inc. Has $27.11 Million Stock Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Centaurus Financial increased its Microsoft stake by 3.7% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 73,249 shares valued at approximately $27.11 million. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with revenue rising 17.7% year over year to $90.01 billion and EPS of $4.74, exceeding analyst expectations. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $560.27.
• AI remains Microsoft’s central growth driver and risk. Azure expansion, Copilot adoption and major infrastructure investments support bullish sentiment, while roughly $175 billion in planned AI spending could pressure free cash flow and cloud margins.

Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 3.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 73,249 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 2,604 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 1.3% of Centaurus Financial Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Centaurus Financial Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $27,115,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219 over the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to highlight Microsoft’s Azure expansion, accelerating Microsoft 365 Copilot adoption, and the company’s ability to sustain double-digit earnings growth. Microsoft’s latest quarter also exceeded expectations, with revenue of approximately $90 billion and earnings growth supported by Azure. Microsoft’s Cloud Gains Can Sustain Double-Digit Earnings Growth
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its Microsoft price target to $625, citing stronger Copilot demand and accelerating infrastructure investment. Other analysts remain bullish, with a six-month median target near $540, reinforcing investor confidence in Microsoft’s long-term AI positioning. JPMorgan Raises Microsoft Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is combining its consumer and enterprise Copilot applications into a unified platform, potentially improving distribution, user engagement, and monetization as it competes with ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude. Microsoft Unifies Copilot Applications
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft approved the first AI data-center deployment under its $9.7 billion agreement with IREN, supporting Azure capacity expansion. The deal improves supply visibility but also underscores Microsoft’s substantial capital requirements. IREN Delivers First AI Cloud Deployment
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that Microsoft’s roughly $175 billion AI infrastructure spending plan could pressure free cash flow and cloud margins. A reported decline in cloud gross margin and higher data-center, chip, electricity, and labor costs raise questions about how much of the company’s large AI backlog will translate into profit. Microsoft’s AI Backlog and Profitability Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft has closed at least 15 China offices and joint ventures add geopolitical and operational uncertainty, although Azure reportedly provides a profitable reason to retain a limited China presence. Microsoft Retreats in China

Microsoft Stock Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $495.40 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.68 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50 day moving average of $411.27 and a 200-day moving average of $408.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued 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. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.65 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 target price (up from $570.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. CLSA reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $510.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $586.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $560.27.

Microsoft Company 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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