Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Holdings Cut by Cynosure Group LLC

Key Points

• Cynosure Group LLC reduced its Microsoft stake by 62.2% in the second quarter, selling 8,813 shares and retaining 5,349 shares valued at approximately $2.0 million.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with earnings per share of $4.74 and revenue of $90.01 billion, up 17.7% year over year and above analyst expectations.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share, while analysts maintained a broadly bullish outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $571.18.

Cynosure Group LLC cut its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 62.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,349 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 8,813 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 0.3% of Cynosure Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Cynosure Group LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,995,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Frankly Finances LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 37.4% during the second quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $59,000. Glynn Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 34.2% in the 2nd quarter. Glynn Capital Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the software giant's stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $101,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $517.53 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72. The company has a market cap of $3.84 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.82, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.10. 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 has a fifty day moving average price of $490.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $429.97.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. This represents a 9.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 143,009 shares of company stock valued at $71,420,699. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MSFT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $522.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Forty-three equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $571.18.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure and AI demand remain the primary catalyst. Investor data and analyst commentary point to accelerating Azure demand, while Microsoft’s recent earnings showed its fastest cloud growth in four years. The improving demand is helping ease concerns that the company’s substantial AI infrastructure spending will not generate adequate returns. Ca$htag: MSFT Azure Cloud Drives Soaring Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo added Microsoft to its Q4 Tactical Ideas list and raised its price target to $725, citing Azure’s growth potential and the prospect of improved AI monetization through Copilot. The action adds to a series of bullish analyst revisions; one report noted that 52 analysts covering Microsoft currently have no sell ratings. With Azure as a Catalyst, Microsoft Is Positioned for Sustained Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s OpenAI relationship provides potential additional value. Investors are increasingly focused on Microsoft’s stake and commercial partnership with OpenAI, particularly ahead of a possible OpenAI initial public offering that could provide a market reference for the investment. OpenAI’s Future IPO Keeps Me Buying Microsoft
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft introduced new real-time AI speech models for customer-service agents, multilingual assistants and voice interfaces. The products broaden Microsoft’s enterprise AI offering and could support additional cloud consumption and software revenue. Microsoft Targets Contact Center Market With Real-Time AI Voice Models
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting Microsoft’s October 7 Surface and Windows event. New hardware or Windows updates could support the ecosystem, although the event has not yet produced a material earnings catalyst. Microsoft Stock Notches Up Ahead of the Surface Show
• Negative Sentiment: Risks include heavy AI capital spending, valuation concerns and broader market concentration. Critics argue that rising data-center capacity could pressure compute pricing and returns, while strategists warn that a market correction could disproportionately affect megacap technology stocks. Microsoft’s dividend remains affordable, but AI infrastructure spending and lease commitments could limit future dividend growth. Morgan Stanley Strategist Sees Market Drawdown Potential

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.

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