Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is Sylvest Advisors LLC's 8th Largest Position

Key Points

• Sylvest Advisors LLC increased its Microsoft stake by 8.4% in the first quarter, bringing holdings to 19,923 shares worth about $7.38 million. Microsoft now represents 3.9% of the firm’s portfolio and is its 8th largest position.
• Microsoft continues to draw heavy institutional interest, with hedge funds and other investors owning 71.13% of the stock. The article also notes several large institutions significantly added to or initiated positions in the company.
• The company posted strong quarterly results, beating earnings and revenue estimates, while analysts remain generally positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $560.75. Microsoft also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share.

Sylvest Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 8.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,923 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 1,540 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 3.9% of Sylvest Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Sylvest Advisors LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,375,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth about $50,664,631,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 56,160.8% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 60,116,384 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,073,486,000 after acquiring an additional 60,009,531 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 1st quarter worth approximately $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 500.0% in the 3rd 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 worth $30,840,432,000 after acquiring an additional 49,618,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 49,640.3% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant's stock worth $14,905,904,000 after acquiring an additional 29,906,791 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of Microsoft stock traded up $5.43 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $392.17. The stock had a trading volume of 4,549,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 37,726,043. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $406.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $417.46. The stock has a market cap of $2.91 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.35, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.13.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion for 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%.Microsoft's quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. China Renaissance lowered their price objective on Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Forty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $560.75.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson reiterated a Buy rating and a $550 price target on Microsoft, suggesting meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports said Azure cloud growth remains strong and Microsoft’s AI business is still expanding, with analysts highlighting cloud share gains and AI monetization as key drivers for a future rebound. Blockonomi article
• Positive Sentiment: Several bullish pieces argued Microsoft may be one of the most mispriced AI stocks, pointing to its large OpenAI stake, strong enterprise demand, and the potential for Copilot and “orchestration” tools to become more lucrative over time. Barron's article
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft also drew attention for a new AI-focused business unit and for merging its consumer and enterprise Copilot apps, which could improve product clarity but is still in the execution phase. Motley Fool article
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft said it is cutting about 4,800 jobs globally, with roughly 3,200 roles hit in Xbox, signaling a broad restructuring and raising concerns about weaker gaming economics. Reuters article
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also reacting to a securities fraud class action tied to alleged Copilot and Azure disclosure issues, adding legal overhang after prior stock weakness. PR Newswire article

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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