CPC Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• CPC Advisors LLC increased its Microsoft stake by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, buying 2,841 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 34,523 shares worth about $16.7 million.
• Microsoft continues to attract institutional and analyst support, with 71.13% of shares held by hedge funds and other institutions and an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” with a $560.88 price target.
• The company posted strong quarterly results, beating earnings expectations with $4.27 EPS on $82.89 billion in revenue, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share payable on June 11.

CPC Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,523 shares of the software giant's stock after buying an additional 2,841 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 1.7% of CPC Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. CPC Advisors LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $16,696,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IRON Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 23.2% during the third 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 during the period. PMG Family Office LLC bought a new position in Microsoft in the third quarter worth about $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 2.3% in the third quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock worth $36,347,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its stake in Microsoft by 1.0% in the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 949,901 shares of the software giant's stock worth $493,860,000 after buying an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management raised its stake in Microsoft by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant's stock worth $6,041,000 after buying an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman revealed a new multi-billion-dollar stake in Microsoft (MSFT), saying the company looks attractively valued and highlighting Azure, Microsoft 365, and AI as key growth drivers. Reuters: Ackman's Pershing Square takes stake in Microsoft, citing 'compelling' valuation
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continued to argue that Microsoft’s AI infrastructure, Azure growth, and OpenAI exposure could support further upside, with some seeing the stock’s weaker recent performance as a buying opportunity. TipRanks: Microsoft Buy Rating Reiterated as AI and Cloud Momentum Builds
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft also announced a board addition, appointing former EY chief Carmine Di Sibio to its board of directors, which is a governance update but not an immediate operating catalyst. PR Newswire: Microsoft announces appointment of Carmine Di Sibio to board of directors
• Negative Sentiment: The UK opened an antitrust probe into Microsoft’s business software and cloud practices, creating a potential regulatory overhang for the stock. Reuters: UK opens antitrust probe into Microsoft's business software
• Negative Sentiment: LinkedIn, a Microsoft-owned unit, announced 5% workforce cuts, reinforcing that the company is still trimming costs even as it ramps AI spending. Reuters: LinkedIn to lay off 5% of workforce amid tech industry cuts

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $421.92 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $356.28 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $398.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $441.39. The company has a market capitalization of $3.13 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $515.00 price target (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Microsoft from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, January 18th. Thirty-nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $560.88.

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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