Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Acquired by Cornerstone Enterprises LLC

Key Points

• Cornerstone Enterprises LLC increased its Microsoft stake by 16.2% in the fourth quarter, buying 3,786 additional shares and bringing its total to 27,192 shares worth about $13.15 million. Microsoft is now its fourth-largest holding and makes up 6.3% of its portfolio.
• Microsoft posted strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.27 beating estimates and revenue of $82.89 billion topping expectations. Revenue rose 18.3% year over year, and analysts still expect the company to earn 16.76 EPS for the current year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, payable on June 11, representing a 0.9% annualized yield. Meanwhile, analysts remain broadly positive, with 39 Buy ratings and an average price target of $560.88.

Cornerstone Enterprises LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,192 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 3,786 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 6.3% of Cornerstone Enterprises LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Cornerstone Enterprises LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $13,151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 287.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation bought a new position in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.4%

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $417.42 on Wednesday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $398.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $439.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $356.28 and a one year high of $555.45. The company has a market cap of $3.10 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 21.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft to $502.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Microsoft from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Wolfe Research decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Microsoft from a "market perform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Thirty-nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $560.88.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s Azure cloud business is still growing strongly, with recent commentary pointing to about 40% growth, reinforcing the company’s AI and cloud leadership thesis. 9 Best Cloud Stocks to Buy as Azure Growth Hits 40%
• Positive Sentiment: The jury defeat for Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI removed a legal overhang around Microsoft’s AI partner ecosystem and was viewed as a bullish development for MSFT’s broader AI strategy. Musk loses blockbuster OpenAI suit as jury says too late
• Positive Sentiment: New product news around Surface devices for business and AI workloads suggests Microsoft is still pushing enterprise hardware and AI adoption across its ecosystem. Microsoft launches Surface Pro 12 and Surface Laptop 8 with Intel chips
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft also unveiled enterprise Surface models powered by Intel Core Ultra chips, which is a product refresh but not likely a major near-term stock catalyst on its own. Microsoft (MSFT) Unveils Enterprise Surface Lineup Powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3
• Neutral Sentiment: LinkedIn said it will lay off more than 600 employees, a cost-cutting move that may help margins but also signals restructuring inside Microsoft’s professional networking unit. Panic in California as LinkedIn announces hundreds of layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors are focusing on concerns about mixed Xbox messaging, which may be weighing on sentiment around Microsoft’s gaming segment. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Slips on Mixed Xbox Messaging
• Negative Sentiment: Another report highlighted a Windows drivers issue that could hurt battery life on Windows 11 laptops, adding a small but negative product-quality overhang. “Blind Spot” in Windows Drivers Leads to Sub-Par Battery Life, Microsoft Stock NASDAQ: MSFT Slips
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by EVP Amy Coleman, while modest, can also dampen sentiment when the stock is already under pressure. Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT EVP Amy Coleman Sells 1,262 Shares

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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