Delta Global Management LP Reduces Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Delta Global Management LP cut its position in Microsoft by 9.6% in Q3, selling 14,949 shares and ending the quarter with 141,192 shares worth $73.13 million, which is about 5.4% of its investment portfolio.
• Insider activity was mixed: Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares at roughly $397.35, while EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares at about $409.52.
• Microsoft recently beat quarterly expectations (EPS $4.14; revenue $81.27B, +16.7% y/y) and announced a $0.91 quarterly dividend payable June 11, implying a ~0.9% yield.

Delta Global Management LP lowered its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 141,192 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 14,949 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 5.4% of Delta Global Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Delta Global Management LP's holdings in Microsoft were worth $73,130,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Microsoft by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $350,712,742,000 after purchasing an additional 13,691,572 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 299,196,519 shares of the software giant's stock worth $148,823,341,000 after purchasing an additional 3,166,275 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 179,001,751 shares of the software giant's stock worth $88,714,256,000 after purchasing an additional 3,532,054 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth about $50,493,678,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

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

Microsoft Stock Up 1.1%

MSFT opened at $399.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.97 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $555.45. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $426.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $475.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MSFT. Wedbush decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. DZ Bank reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $450.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, March 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $591.95.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft signed a letter of intent to receive 1.35GW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPU systems at Nscale’s new West Virginia “Monarch” AI campus — a clear signal Microsoft is securing large-scale external AI capacity to support customer demand and accelerate AI workloads. Nscale and Microsoft Announce Collaboration with NVIDIA and Caterpillar to Deliver 1.35GW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPUs at Flagship AI Factory Campus in West Virginia
• Positive Sentiment: Nvidia-backed Nscale acquired a 2,250-acre campus and plans up to 8GW of compute there — the scale of this buildout increases available AI capacity in which Microsoft can be a customer/partner, easing short-term Azure capacity constraints and supporting long-term cloud/AI revenue growth. Nvidia-Backed Nscale Plans Huge Data Center Cluster in West Virginia
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary and analysts continue to call Microsoft a long-term AI winner and a potential buying opportunity amid the pullback — bullish analyst notes can support near-term buying interest and reduce downside from headline-driven volatility. Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Tips Up With New Scam-Fighting Coalition Microsoft Is 'Long-Term Winner' In AI Arms Race—Sell-Off Is Buying 'Opportunity,' Says Don Nesbitt
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft joined or backed anti-scam initiatives — good for reputation and user trust but limited direct near-term earnings impact. Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Tips Up With New Scam-Fighting Coalition
• Neutral Sentiment: Big-tech carbon credit purchases are rising as AI capacity expands; Microsoft is a leader — this signals higher ESG spending and potential margin/headline impacts, but it also mitigates regulatory/PR risks. Big Tech purchases of carbon credits explode amid AI race, with Microsoft leading the way
• Negative Sentiment: Industry article flags nearly $700B of off‑balance-sheet data center leases led by Microsoft/peers — a reminder that massive AI infrastructure commitments carry financial and execution risk if revenue growth lags. Data Center Leases: Is Spending Mindful Of Revenues?
• Negative Sentiment: Critical commentary and downgrade talk emphasize macro, competition and geopolitical/war-related risks to Microsoft’s outlook — such narratives can pressure sentiment and valuation multiples even if fundamentals remain strong. Microsoft: Macrohard, Competition, And War-Related Fears (Rating Downgrade)
• Negative Sentiment: High-profile investor selling (e.g., Peter Thiel’s fund trimming Microsoft) can fuel short-term negative headlines and investor nervousness despite differing long-term views. Palantir Billionaire Peter Thiel Sells 3 AI Stocks in a $74 Million Warning to Wall Street.

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).

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.