Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Position Cut by First Community Trust NA

Key Points

• First Community Trust NA cut its stake in Microsoft by 7.0% to 19,188 shares (worth $9.28 million), making MSFT about 6.9% of the firm's portfolio and its second-largest holding.
• Several large institutions — including Norges Bank, Nuveen, UBS and Northern Trust — initiated or materially increased positions, leaving about 71.13% of Microsoft stock owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Wall Street sentiment is broadly positive (consensus "Moderate Buy", average target ~$586.26) with heavy short-term call buying and AI monetization upside, but risks include OpenAI partnership friction, competitive pressure and AI capex concerns ahead of earnings on April 29.

First Community Trust NA cut its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 7.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 19,188 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,435 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 6.9% of First Community Trust NA's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. First Community Trust NA's holdings in Microsoft were worth $9,280,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the first quarter valued at approximately $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 500.0% during 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. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 49,640.3% during 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. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Microsoft by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $35,316,535,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,470 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy bullish options flow: traders bought roughly 811,669 MSFT call options Monday (about +31% vs. average), signaling short‑term investor conviction and speculative buying that can lift the stock.
• Positive Sentiment: Investor/market commentary is bullish — some investors now say it’s time to pounce after the pullback, framing MSFT as a value play with long-term AI and Azure upside. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Rebound Gains Steam
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst backing and buy‑the‑dip narratives: Bernstein and other bull cases argue AI capex fears are over‑priced and the pullback creates a margin of safety; several firms maintain bullish ratings and lofty price targets (median target still well above current levels). ‘This Looks Worse Than It Is,’ Says Bernstein
• Positive Sentiment: Positive fundamentals on AI monetization: coverage highlights Copilot, Azure growth and a sizable AI backlog as drivers of revenue and margins — supporting the bull narrative that near‑term noise may not derail long‑term cash flow. This Is How Microsoft Is Making Money from AI Right Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming catalyst: Microsoft reports earnings later this month (April 29) — results and Azure growth commentary could amplify moves in either direction, so many traders are positioning ahead of the print. Should You Buy Microsoft Stock Before April 29?
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector tailwind: tech stocks were broadly firmer late Monday, which often lifts large-cap names like MSFT alongside the group. Sector Update: Tech Stocks Gain Late Afternoon
• Negative Sentiment: OpenAI partnership friction: a leaked internal memo and reporting that OpenAI sees Microsoft as limiting its enterprise reach — plus OpenAI’s pivot toward Amazon/AWS — raise strategic risk to MSFT’s exclusive‑access narrative and could pressure future AI revenue assumptions. OpenAI touts Amazon alliance in memo, says Microsoft has 'limited our ability'
• Negative Sentiment: Competition and product overlap: Anthropic and others are expanding into Office/enterprise integrations (e.g., Claude for Word), which could cap some of Microsoft’s Copilot upside and add competitive pressure. Anthropic Launches Claude for Word
• Negative Sentiment: AI capex and margin concerns: social and analyst discussion flag heavy AI infrastructure spending and a technical downtrend; if capex keeps compressing margins or Azure growth disappoints, downside could deepen before recovery. Microsoft Stock Opinions on AI Capex-Driven Drawdown

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $660.00 to $635.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Microsoft from $650.00 to $600.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Mizuho cut their target price on Microsoft from $640.00 to $620.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, New Street Research upped their target price on Microsoft from $670.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $586.26.

Microsoft Stock Up 3.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $384.37 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $355.67 and a 52-week high of $555.45. The stock has a market cap of $2.85 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.11. The business's 50 day moving average is $391.33 and its 200 day moving average is $456.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The company had revenue of $81.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $80.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.23 earnings per share. Microsoft's revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is 22.76%.

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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