Lane Brothers & Co. Inc. Buys New Stake in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Lane Brothers & Co. Inc. opened a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter, buying 3,936 shares valued at about $1.9 million. Microsoft now ranks as the firm’s 18th-largest holding and makes up roughly 1.4% of its portfolio.
• Microsoft continues to attract major institutional interest, with large hedge funds and asset managers adding stakes; the article says 71.13% of shares are owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Recent company news is mostly positive, including a 20-year power agreement with Chevron for a massive West Texas data center to support AI and cloud growth. At the same time, Microsoft faces some cautionary headlines, including insider selling, a class-action lawsuit, and bearish analyst commentary.

Lane Brothers & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,936 shares of the software giant's stock, valued at approximately $1,903,000. Microsoft makes up about 1.4% of Lane Brothers & Co. Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MSFT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,664,631,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 56,160.8% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 60,116,384 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,073,486,000 after purchasing an additional 60,009,531 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the first quarter worth about $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 500.0% in the third 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 purchasing an additional 49,618,571 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% in the second 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 during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft announced a 20-year power agreement with Chevron for Project Kilby, a 2.67-gigawatt natural-gas-powered data center in West Texas. The deal underscores Microsoft’s commitment to expanding AI/cloud capacity and helps secure long-term electricity for its growing data center needs. Article: Chevron signs power supply deal with Microsoft for Texas data center
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles argue Microsoft’s selloff has made the stock attractive, citing history that suggests a rebound and pointing to still-strong AI and cloud fundamentals. These pieces may be encouraging bargain hunters and long-term investors. Article: History Suggests a Rebound Ahead, Says Top Investor About Microsoft Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is also being highlighted for new AI banking connections and deeper enterprise AI integrations, reinforcing the idea that its AI monetization story is still progressing. Article: Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Notches Up With New AI Banking Connections
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary around Satya Nadella’s remarks suggests Microsoft wants broader, cheaper, and more trusted AI rather than a winner-take-all model race. That may help the company strategically, but it is more of a long-term positioning story than an immediate stock catalyst. Article: Why Microsoft Needs to Carve its Own AI Path
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is facing fresh securities class action/lawsuit headlines tied to alleged disclosures about Copilot and Azure. Even if the legal impact is uncertain, this adds an overhang for investors. Article: Class Action Lawsuit Has Been Filed Against Microsoft Corporation
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish notes continue to question whether Microsoft’s best growth days are behind it, and some analysts are keeping a cautious stance despite the lower valuation. That skepticism can limit upside in the near term. Article: Microsoft: The Best Days Are Behind It

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total value of $1,812,780.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares in the company, valued at $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 90 days, insiders have sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $373.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.78 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.11. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $412.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $423.55. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $356.28 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 earnings per share. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders 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 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Raymond James Financial lowered Microsoft from a "market perform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $675.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $540.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Forty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $561.20.

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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