Heritage Investors Management Corp Buys 2,524 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Heritage Investors Management Corp increased its Microsoft stake by 0.9% in the first quarter, buying 2,524 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 294,296 shares worth about $108.9 million.
• Microsoft continues to attract strong institutional interest, with hedge funds and other investors owning 71.13% of the stock, while several firms recently made large additions to their positions.
• Analysts remain constructive on Microsoft, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $559.84; the company also posted quarterly results that beat expectations on both earnings and revenue.

Heritage Investors Management Corp increased its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 0.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 294,296 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 2,524 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises 3.3% of Heritage Investors Management Corp's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Heritage Investors Management Corp's holdings in Microsoft were worth $108,939,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at $50,664,631,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 56,160.8% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 60,116,384 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,073,486,000 after acquiring an additional 60,009,531 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 1st quarter worth about $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 500.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 59,543,261 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $30,840,432,000 after acquiring an additional 49,618,571 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $14,905,904,000 after purchasing an additional 29,906,791 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. DZ Bank reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $575.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Microsoft to a "buy" rating and set a $485.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Forty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $559.84.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $390.99 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $349.20 and a one year high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market cap of $2.90 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $401.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $413.41.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. Microsoft's revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles highlighted Microsoft’s AI strategy as a growth driver, including comments from CEO Satya Nadella about “the next massive AI trade” and enterprise customers integrating more partner AI tools into Microsoft’s ecosystem. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remained constructive ahead of Microsoft’s late-July earnings report, with bullish notes pointing to strong Azure growth, large commercial backlog, and expectations that AI spending can support longer-term revenue growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple market write-ups argued Microsoft may be undervalued after this year’s pullback, with some firms seeing meaningful upside if the company converts AI and Azure demand into earnings growth. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft continues to draw long-term investor support from institutional buying, government contract wins, and favorable analyst ratings, which helps reinforce confidence but is not a fresh catalyst by itself. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Shares are also being weighed by class-action lawsuit headlines tied to alleged Copilot-related misrepresentations and securities fraud claims, which add legal overhang and headline risk for investors. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern also remains centered on Microsoft’s heavy AI capital spending and environmental impact, with some commentary questioning whether rising capex and emissions can eventually pressure margins or sentiment. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total transaction of $1,812,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 47,468 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. This trade represents a 8.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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).

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