LRZ Capital LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• LRZ Capital cut its Microsoft position by 24.5% in the second quarter, selling 12,395 shares and retaining 38,110 shares worth approximately $14.2 million. Microsoft remains 7.2% of the firm’s portfolio and its fourth-largest holding.
• Microsoft insiders sold 143,009 shares worth about $71.4 million over the past 90 days, including significant sales by CEO Satya Nadella and EVP Amy Hood under pre-arranged trading plans.
• Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with $4.74 in EPS and $90.01 billion in revenue, while raising its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share. Analysts remain broadly positive, with 43 Buy ratings and a consensus price target of $569.29.

LRZ Capital LLC lessened its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 24.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,110 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 12,395 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 7.2% of LRZ Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. LRZ Capital LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $14,216,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FWG Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. FWG Holdings LLC now owns 8,368 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $4,047,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial grew its holdings in Microsoft by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Friedenthal Financial now owns 431 shares of the software giant's stock worth $160,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Sequent Planning LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Sequent Planning LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,382,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC now owns 5,543 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,052,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, American Investment Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.1% during the first quarter. American Investment Services Inc. now owns 876 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares in the company, valued at $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 143,009 shares of company stock valued at $71,420,699 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $508.96 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $482.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $427.75. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.78 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.65 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.62 EPS 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 $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Argus cut their target price on Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Microsoft from $522.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $510.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $569.29.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Copilot remains the primary catalyst. Jefferies reiterated its bullish view, citing Microsoft’s redesigned Copilot, new usage-based revenue opportunities and potential for paid Copilot seats to double over the next year. Enterprise AI adoption, however, is expected to build gradually. Jefferies Doubles Down on Microsoft's Copilot Opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see further upside. JPMorgan maintained a Buy rating with a $625 target, while RBC reportedly set a $640 target, supported by Azure growth, Copilot adoption and Microsoft’s expanding AI infrastructure. The stock is also on track for its strongest quarterly performance in decades, reflecting a market “flight to quality.” Microsoft Stock Surges Past $500
• Positive Sentiment: Azure and enterprise demand support the long-term case. Recent commentary points to Azure growth above 40%, rapidly increasing Copilot seats and a commercial backlog approaching $700 billion. Microsoft is also bringing OpenAI’s autonomous “Dots” AI workers into its enterprise security ecosystem, potentially expanding cloud and software consumption. Microsoft Brings OpenAI's Autonomous Dots AI Workers Into the Enterprise
• Neutral Sentiment: AI policy developments remain mixed. President Trump reaffirmed support for data centers and announced voluntary AI controls with Microsoft and other technology companies, potentially easing regulatory concerns while leaving uncertainty over whether voluntary safeguards will be sufficient. At A.I. Event, Trump Asks Meta, OpenAI and Microsoft to Make Safety Decisions Themselves
• Negative Sentiment: Privacy and competitive risks are weighing on sentiment. Reports that humans may review some Copilot prompts have raised data-privacy concerns. OpenAI is also launching workplace features that increasingly resemble Microsoft Office, intensifying the risk that a key partner could compete directly with Microsoft’s software franchise. OpenAI Takes on Microsoft With a ChatGPT Office Suite
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are questioning the cost and valuation of the AI buildout. Microsoft is reducing staff while committing heavily to data centers, and some analysts argue that cash-flow benefits may take longer to materialize. After its rally, elevated expectations leave less room for execution setbacks.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, gaming products and business solutions. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is best known for the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office productivity software. Microsoft is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, and serves consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

Microsoft's productivity and business offerings include Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, along with collaboration tools including 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.