Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. Acquires 1,271 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Investment Partners Asset Management increased its Microsoft stake by 9.9% in the second quarter, purchasing 1,271 shares to own 14,060 shares valued at approximately $5.25 million. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Analyst sentiment remains strongly positive: 43 analysts rate Microsoft a Buy, with an average price target of $569.29. Azure demand, Copilot growth and expanding AI infrastructure—including a planned $10 billion-plus Gulf-region investment—are key catalysts.
• Microsoft reported quarterly revenue of $90.01 billion and EPS of $4.74, exceeding estimates, while revenue grew 17.7% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share, although executives have sold shares recently under pre-arranged trading plans.

Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,060 shares of the software giant's stock after buying an additional 1,271 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 2.9% of Investment Partners Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $5,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Greenwood Gearhart LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Greenwood Gearhart LLC now owns 114,410 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $42,677,000 after acquiring an additional 7,673 shares in the last quarter. Opus Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 5.7% during the second quarter. Opus Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,866 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 15.2% during the second quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 6,364 shares of the software giant's stock worth $2,374,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.7% during the second quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 108,104 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $40,325,000 after purchasing an additional 798 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Freedom Day Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 23.5% in the second quarter. Freedom Day Solutions LLC now owns 17,025 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $6,351,000 after purchasing an additional 3,241 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism is increasing. Stifel upgraded Microsoft to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $575, citing Azure and Copilot growth, durable margins, and a path for AI spending to produce stronger revenue. Jefferies also reaffirmed its Buy rating, while other analysts highlighted potential upside. Why These Wall Street Analysts Think Microsoft Stock Is Getting Back on Track
• Positive Sentiment: Azure demand remains the central growth catalyst. Reports point to a roughly $678 billion backlog and the need for Microsoft to add data-center capacity quickly enough to serve existing customers. Azure Red Hat OpenShift for Azure Government also received DoD Impact Level 5 certification, expanding its use among government and highly regulated customers. Azure Red Hat OpenShift Achieves IL5 Certification
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is expanding its AI infrastructure footprint. The company plans to invest more than $10 billion in Gulf-region cloud, AI, connectivity and cybersecurity infrastructure through 2030, potentially supporting long-term regional demand. Microsoft Plans Gulf Investment

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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 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 owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 143,009 shares of company stock worth $71,420,699 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MSFT shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Microsoft from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Phillip Securities downgraded Microsoft from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Forty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $569.29.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $497.93 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $349.20 and a one year 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $475.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $425.54. The stock has a market cap of $3.70 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.65 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This is a positive change from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is 20.27%.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital solutions for consumers, businesses and public-sector organizations. Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Teams collaboration software, Dynamics business applications and Azure cloud computing services.

The company also operates LinkedIn, GitHub and Xbox, which includes gaming consoles, video games and related online services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report).

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.