Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Position Increased by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Key Points

• Central Bank & Trust increased its Microsoft stake 2.9% in the third quarter, adding 1,052 shares to hold 37,923 shares valued at about $19.45 million.
• Microsoft’s latest quarterly results beat expectations: EPS was $4.89 versus $4.72 forecast, while revenue rose 18.8% year over year to $92.28 billion. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive view, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $609.54. Cloud and AI adoption are supporting sentiment, though competition in productivity software and potential data-center equipment restrictions are risks.

Central Bank & Trust Co. lifted its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,923 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 1,052 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 2.9% of Central Bank & Trust Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Central Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $19,451,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Frankly Finances LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $37,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Fiduciary Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Investors following MSFT have been watching these stories:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s cloud and AI businesses continue to attract enterprise use. A new IBM partnership combines Microsoft’s cloud, data and security services with more than 6,000 AI agents; Northern Trust also reported that an agent built with Microsoft cut data-preparation time by 83%. IBM and Microsoft announce an AI agent platform Northern Trust leans on Microsoft to boost agentic AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Evercore said Anthropic’s Claude Sheets is not yet a substitute for Excel, tempering concerns that the new tools will quickly displace Microsoft 365. Still, the launch puts competitive pressure on Microsoft’s productivity products and Copilot. Evercore weighs disruption concerns after Claude Sheets launch
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft is pushing back against a potential U.S. ban on Chinese data-center components point to a possible obstacle for equipment access and data-center deployment—important given the company’s AI infrastructure needs. Microsoft presses to scuttle expected ban on Chinese data-center technology

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $521.13 on Thursday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $559.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.20, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock's fifty day moving average is $518.20 and its 200-day moving average is $441.37.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.28% and a net margin of 41.17%. The business had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $90.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.13 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This is a positive change from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft's payout ratio is 20.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, September 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $440.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $662.00 to $722.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $609.54.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the completion of the sale, 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. 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 three months, insiders sold 142,809 shares of company stock valued at $72,114,646. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, and digital solutions for consumers, businesses, and public-sector organizations. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.

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