Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP Has $260.47 Million Stock Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Evelyn Partners increased its Microsoft position by 4.6% in the first quarter to 703,648 shares valued at $260.47 million, making Microsoft its second-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the company.
• Microsoft reported a strong quarter, with earnings of $4.74 per share and revenue of $90.01 billion, surpassing analyst estimates; revenue grew 17.7% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $560.27 average price target.
• Microsoft declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, equivalent to a $3.64 annualized payout and 0.7% yield. Executives sold shares recently, with insiders selling $17.26 million worth over the past three months.

Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 4.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 703,648 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 31,118 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 7.1% of Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP's holdings in Microsoft were worth $260,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Markel Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% in the first quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 537,630 shares of the software giant's stock worth $199,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 8.4% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,921,677 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,562,197,000 after acquiring an additional 537,634 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Securities Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,616,000. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management boosted its stake in Microsoft by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $6,041,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 138.8% during the first quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,356,359 shares of the software giant's stock worth $502,077,000 after purchasing an additional 788,297 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were 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 directly owned 42,677 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $492.43 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $408.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $407.67. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $553.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market cap of $3.66 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The company's revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 20.27%.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results remain the primary bullish catalyst. Microsoft reported revenue growth of 17.7% and earnings of $4.74 per share, well above consensus, reinforcing confidence in Azure, cloud demand and AI monetization. Magnificent Seven Earnings Remain Robust: MSFT, AAPL
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains supportive. Wells Fargo raised its Microsoft price target to a Street-high $700 from $650 and maintained an overweight rating, citing the company’s growth prospects and ecosystem strength. Wells Fargo Raises Microsoft Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is expanding its AI and cloud ecosystem through partnerships, including S&P Global data in Microsoft 365 Copilot, broader enterprise adoption in Brazil and Sionic’s instant-payment service on Microsoft Marketplace. These initiatives could support platform usage and recurring revenue over time. S&P Global Expands Collaboration with Microsoft
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may introduce another Maia AI processor as early as September highlight its strategy to use custom chips to improve Azure AI efficiency. The move could reduce costs and reliance on outside suppliers, but the financial benefits will depend on successful scaling. Microsoft Stock Drops While Maia Chip Ambitions Expand
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are concerned that Microsoft’s rapidly rising AI infrastructure spending could pressure margins, cash flow and returns before new capacity generates sufficient revenue. The stock’s sharp rally since the earnings report also increases profit-taking and valuation sensitivity. Microsoft's AI Data Center Push: Growth Engine or Capex Trap?
• Negative Sentiment: A newly disclosed Windows zero-day vulnerability that may enable system-wide access adds reputational, remediation and potential liability concerns. Separate reports of pending investor lawsuits contribute to a cautious tone, although neither issue has yet altered Microsoft’s fundamental earnings outlook. New Windows Zero-Day Bug Published

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial cut shares of Microsoft from a "market perform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Microsoft from $502.00 to $522.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $515.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $560.27.

Microsoft 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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