Holocene Advisors LP Sells 282,246 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Holocene Advisors trimmed its Microsoft stake by 9.6%, selling 282,246 shares and finishing the quarter with 2,663,025 shares worth about $1.379 billion (Microsoft is ~3.1% of the firm's holdings and its fourth-largest position).
• Microsoft signed a letter of intent to secure 1.35GW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPUs at Nscale’s new West Virginia “Monarch” AI campus, part of a broader buildout (up to 8GW) that expands external AI capacity for Azure and supports cloud/AI revenue growth.
• Microsoft beat quarterly estimates (EPS $4.14 vs $3.86; revenue $81.27B vs $80.28B), declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 (annualized yield ~0.9%), and holds a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $591.95.

Holocene Advisors LP lessened its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,663,025 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 282,246 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 3.1% of Holocene Advisors LP's holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position. Holocene Advisors LP's holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,379,314,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft in the third quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter worth approximately $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. The trade was a 6.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, March 9th. Evercore reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $640.00 to $580.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $591.95.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $399.95 on Tuesday. 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 market cap of $2.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $426.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $475.04. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $81.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The business's revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.23 EPS. Analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid 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 currently 22.76%.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft signed a letter of intent to receive 1.35GW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPU systems at Nscale’s new West Virginia “Monarch” AI campus — a clear signal Microsoft is securing large-scale external AI capacity to support customer demand and accelerate AI workloads. Nscale and Microsoft Announce Collaboration with NVIDIA and Caterpillar to Deliver 1.35GW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL72 GPUs at Flagship AI Factory Campus in West Virginia
• Positive Sentiment: Nvidia-backed Nscale acquired a 2,250-acre campus and plans up to 8GW of compute there — the scale of this buildout increases available AI capacity in which Microsoft can be a customer/partner, easing short-term Azure capacity constraints and supporting long-term cloud/AI revenue growth. Nvidia-Backed Nscale Plans Huge Data Center Cluster in West Virginia
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary and analysts continue to call Microsoft a long-term AI winner and a potential buying opportunity amid the pullback — bullish analyst notes can support near-term buying interest and reduce downside from headline-driven volatility. Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Tips Up With New Scam-Fighting Coalition Microsoft Is 'Long-Term Winner' In AI Arms Race—Sell-Off Is Buying 'Opportunity,' Says Don Nesbitt
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft joined or backed anti-scam initiatives — good for reputation and user trust but limited direct near-term earnings impact. Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Tips Up With New Scam-Fighting Coalition
• Neutral Sentiment: Big-tech carbon credit purchases are rising as AI capacity expands; Microsoft is a leader — this signals higher ESG spending and potential margin/headline impacts, but it also mitigates regulatory/PR risks. Big Tech purchases of carbon credits explode amid AI race, with Microsoft leading the way
• Negative Sentiment: Industry article flags nearly $700B of off‑balance-sheet data center leases led by Microsoft/peers — a reminder that massive AI infrastructure commitments carry financial and execution risk if revenue growth lags. Data Center Leases: Is Spending Mindful Of Revenues?
• Negative Sentiment: Critical commentary and downgrade talk emphasize macro, competition and geopolitical/war-related risks to Microsoft’s outlook — such narratives can pressure sentiment and valuation multiples even if fundamentals remain strong. Microsoft: Macrohard, Competition, And War-Related Fears (Rating Downgrade)
• Negative Sentiment: High-profile investor selling (e.g., Peter Thiel’s fund trimming Microsoft) can fuel short-term negative headlines and investor nervousness despite differing long-term views. Palantir Billionaire Peter Thiel Sells 3 AI Stocks in a $74 Million Warning to Wall Street.

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).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.