Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is Cardano Risk Management B.V.'s 3rd Largest Position

Key Points

• Cardano Risk Management B.V. sharply reduced its Microsoft stake by 89.7% in the first quarter, but Microsoft still remained its 3rd largest position at 8.8% of holdings, worth about $897.4 million.
• Microsoft shares were trading up 3.0% at $384.28, with the company sporting a $2.85 trillion market cap. The stock remains below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, even after strong recent earnings.
• The company beat earnings and revenue expectations in its latest quarter and announced a $0.91 quarterly dividend. Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a target price of $560.86.

Cardano Risk Management B.V. lessened its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 89.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,424,306 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 21,143,944 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 8.8% of Cardano Risk Management B.V.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Cardano Risk Management B.V.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $897,405,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Taylor Securities Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,616,000. PMG Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $828,000. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management raised its holdings in Microsoft by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $6,041,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2,332.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,746,017 shares of the software giant's stock worth $3,262,509,000 after purchasing an additional 6,468,645 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 272,424 shares of the software giant's stock worth $131,750,000 after purchasing an additional 49,371 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Up 3.0%

Shares of MSFT opened at $384.28 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.85 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.13. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $407.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $418.67. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $555.45.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MSFT. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Microsoft from $675.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $586.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Forty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $560.86.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Haleon signed a new five-year collaboration with Microsoft to expand use of its AI, cloud, and data technologies, underscoring continued enterprise adoption of Microsoft’s AI stack. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: A Jefferies CIO survey showed Azure widening its lead over AWS among U.S. CIOs, supporting the case that Microsoft’s cloud momentum remains intact. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive on the stock, with JMP Securities reaffirming an Outperform view after Copilot Cowork’s launch and other coverage pointing to Microsoft’s AI growth potential. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is still drawing investor attention as a long-term AI winner, but several commentary pieces argue the stock is also under pressure from higher valuation scrutiny and broad Magnificent 7 weakness. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may cut thousands of jobs, including in Xbox, sales, and consulting, are fueling concern that heavy AI spending is pressuring margins and forcing cost reductions. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Investor class-action notices tied to alleged Copilot/Azure misrepresentations are adding legal overhang and keeping sentiment cautious around MSFT. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total transaction of $1,812,780.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. This trade represents a 8.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Company 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).

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