Diversify Advisory Services LLC Sells 13,042 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Diversify Advisory Services LLC trimmed its Microsoft stake by 10.8%, selling 13,042 shares and retaining 108,012 shares worth about $49.67 million, with MSFT representing roughly 1.6% of its holdings (its 9th largest position).
• Microsoft beat Q3 expectations (EPS $4.27 vs. $4.04) with revenue up 18.3%; management highlighted accelerating Azure/Intelligent Cloud growth and rising Copilot adoption (20M+ paid users) as key drivers.
• Near‑term risks cited include a sharp capex surge for AI/data centers that pressures margins, strategic uncertainty after revised OpenAI terms, and workforce reductions signaling cost pressures.

Diversify Advisory Services LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,012 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 13,042 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 1.6% of Diversify Advisory Services LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Diversify Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $49,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd 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. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 EPS beat and revenue roughly in line — Microsoft reported $4.27 EPS, ahead of consensus, and revenue near Street expectations, which helped validate the company’s growth trajectory. Microsoft (MSFT) Beats Q3 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Azure / Intelligent Cloud acceleration: management said cloud growth accelerated (company commentary and charts show mid-to-high‑30s/40% growth in Azure), easing investor worries that AI spending isn’t yet translating to demand. Microsoft tops Wall Street expectations, reports accelerating Azure growth and $37B AI run rate
• Positive Sentiment: Copilot adoption and monetization showing traction — Microsoft reported over 20M paid Copilot users with rising engagement, supporting future software/recurring-revenue upside. Microsoft says it has over 20M paid Copilot users
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance roughly in line — Q4 revenue guidance was near consensus, so the company isn’t signaling an immediate downshift, but investors will watch next‑quarter detail for AI margin leverage. Press release / slide deck
• Neutral Sentiment: LinkedIn AI products on revenue track — Microsoft said LinkedIn hiring agents could reach ~$450M in annual revenue, a niche but tangible AI monetization path. LinkedIn's AI hiring agents on track for $450 million
• Negative Sentiment: CapEx surge and margin pressure — disclosures and third‑party summaries show capex rose sharply (large spend on data centers/AI hardware), which squeezes near‑term margins and fuels investor concern about ROI timing. Q3 earnings: capex surges (Quiver)
• Negative Sentiment: Partnership & competitive noise — OpenAI’s revised terms (non‑exclusive distribution) and the broader partner shifts to rivals like Amazon raise strategic questions about Microsoft’s privileged access and cloud leverage. OpenAI-Microsoft exclusivity reset coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Workforce and restructuring signals — Microsoft expects headcount to decline and has offered voluntary buyouts; that reduces near‑term payroll but underscores cost pressures tied to the AI buildout. Microsoft expects headcount to decrease

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MSFT. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $615.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $590.00 to $502.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $650.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $563.72.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Trading Down 1.1%

MSFT stock opened at $424.46 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $395.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $448.65. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $356.28 and a one year high of $555.45. The stock has a market cap of $3.15 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.04 by $0.23. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $81.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.46 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.54 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

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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