Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. Purchases 642,197 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Edmond DE Rothschild Holding initiated a Microsoft position by purchasing 642,197 shares valued at approximately $239.6 million, making MSFT its fourth-largest holding and 3.2% of its portfolio.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $4.74 per share and revenue of $90.01 billion, up 17.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 42 Buy ratings and a consensus price target of $578.73, though insider selling and emerging regulatory and workforce-related risks remain considerations.

Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. bought a new position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 642,197 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $239,551,000. Microsoft makes up approximately 3.2% of Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in Microsoft by 56,160.8% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 60,116,384 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,073,486,000 after buying an additional 60,009,531 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 234.5% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 17,822,280 shares of the software giant's stock worth $8,619,211,000 after acquiring an additional 12,493,786 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 30.8% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 41,675,076 shares of the software giant's stock worth $15,426,862,000 after acquiring an additional 9,814,598 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 64.3% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 24,264,779 shares of the software giant's stock worth $8,982,083,000 after acquiring an additional 9,493,778 shares during the period. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 38,442.1% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,810,388 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,521,001,000 after acquiring an additional 6,792,718 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $535.07 on Monday. 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 one year low of $349.20 and a one year high of $553.72. The stock has a market cap of $3.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $501.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $435.10.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This is a boost from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.27%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total transaction of $20,764,903.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 143,009 shares of company stock valued at $71,420,699 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft introduced Microsoft-Decision-1, an AI model it says makes decisions substantially faster than GPT-6 Sol. The launch reinforces Microsoft’s competitive position in enterprise AI and could support demand for Azure and Copilot services. Microsoft launches Microsoft-Decision-1
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and investor commentary remains bullish on Microsoft’s AI stack, Azure acceleration, Copilot adoption and a large reported backlog. Wells Fargo reportedly raised its price target to $725, while Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a Buy rating with a $600 target. Morgan Stanley rating
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is attempting to revive Windows and expand on-device AI with new Nvidia-powered Surface hardware, including the premium Surface Laptop Ultra. Local AI processing could strengthen the Windows ecosystem and stimulate higher-value PC sales. Surface Laptop Ultra
• Positive Sentiment: The company is nearing a $4 trillion market capitalization after a strong earnings beat, with revenue and earnings growth continuing to support the recent rally. The next major test is Microsoft’s expected October 28 earnings report. Microsoft approaches $4 trillion valuation
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s new Xbox division, focused on film, television, events and theme parks, could expand the reach of its gaming franchises, although the strategy is unlikely to materially affect near-term financial results. Microsoft forms new Xbox unit
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. suspension of Microsoft’s PERM green-card sponsorship program creates hiring and retention uncertainty, particularly for specialized AI and engineering workers. Investors are weighing potential compliance costs and the risk of an “AI brain drain.” U.S. suspends Microsoft green-card program
• Negative Sentiment: Italy launched an EU-backed antitrust investigation into Microsoft-owned game companies over virtual currencies, adding regulatory risk to the gaming business. Italy gaming investigation

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore raised shares of Microsoft from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $578.73.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, gaming products and business solutions. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is best known for the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office productivity software. Microsoft is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, and serves consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

Microsoft's productivity and business offerings include Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, along with collaboration tools including Teams.

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