Ethos Capital Management Inc. Buys Shares of 3,242 Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Ethos Capital bought 3,242 shares of Microsoft in Q4 worth about $1.57 million, making MSFT roughly 1.5% of its portfolio and its 22nd largest holding.
• Insider activity: Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares at $397.35 (~$1.99M), while EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares at $409.52 (~$5.05M), representing a 6.34% increase and an 8.20% decrease in their respective stakes.
• Company & market outlook: Microsoft topped Q results (EPS $4.14 vs $3.86; revenue $81.27B), has a $3.09T market cap and a $0.91 quarterly dividend (0.9% yield), and carries a "Moderate Buy" analyst consensus with a $575.34 target amid mixed price‑target cuts tied to large near‑term AI investments.

Ethos Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,242 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $1,568,000. Microsoft accounts for about 1.5% of Ethos Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. IRON Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 23.2% in the third quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $3,372,000 after buying an additional 1,225 shares during the period. PMG Family Office LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the third quarter valued at about $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 2.3% during the third quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock worth $36,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,572 shares during the period. Weaver Capital Management LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 14.0% in the third quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 18,340 shares of the software giant's stock worth $9,499,000 after acquiring an additional 2,247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director directly owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a "hold" rating and set a $392.00 target price (down from $540.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wedbush decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $575.34.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $415.75 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $356.28 and a one year high of $555.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $393.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $451.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The business had revenue of $81.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.23 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major long‑term investment: Microsoft committed A$25B (~$18B) to expand Azure and AI capacity in Australia through 2029, supporting future cloud/Azure revenue and global infrastructure scale. Microsoft to invest $18 billion in Australia
• Positive Sentiment: Product and security strengthening: Microsoft is integrating advanced models (including Anthropic’s Mythos) into its security development lifecycle — a move that can reduce risk and improve enterprise trust in its AI offerings. Microsoft to integrate Anthropic's Mythos
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming catalyst: Microsoft reports fiscal Q3 earnings on April 29 — analysts and investors see the print as pivotal for clarity on AI monetization, Azure growth and near‑term margins. Prediction: Microsoft's April 29 Earnings...
• Neutral Sentiment: LinkedIn leadership change: LinkedIn’s CEO transition (Daniel Shapero named) is operationally relevant but not a core driver of Microsoft’s AI/cloud thesis. LinkedIn names new CEO
• Negative Sentiment: Historic voluntary buyouts announced: Microsoft is offering voluntary retirement/buyout packages to up to ~7% of U.S. staff — the first program of this scale in its history. Investors view this as a signal of large reorganization and near‑term restructuring costs tied to a major AI pivot. Microsoft Targets About 7% of Its U.S. Workers With Buyout Offer
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and cost concerns: Reports linking the buyout to massive AI spending (estimates in coverage range into the tens of billions to $100B+ scale) have spooked investors, prompting a sell‑off amid uncertainty over timing of returns on that spending. Microsoft Falls 4% as $110 Billion AI Bet Forces Historic Employee Buyout
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/price‑target pressure: Some shops trimmed targets or adopted cautious ratings as they weigh heavy near‑term AI investment against growth — adding to downside risk into earnings. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowers PT

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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