Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Acquired by Country Trust Bank

Key Points

• Country Trust Bank increased its Microsoft stake by 6% in Q4 to 453,946 shares (≈$219.54 million), making MSFT about 4.0% of the bank’s holdings and its fifth-largest position.
• Microsoft beat quarterly expectations, reporting $4.14 EPS versus $3.86 expected and $81.27B in revenue (vs. $80.28B), with revenue up 16.7% year-over-year.
• Momentum from AI and enterprise deals (including OpenAI/ChatGPT Images 2.0 and large Azure/Copilot agreements) supports growth, but Microsoft faces a significant legal risk after a UK tribunal allowed a £2.1B mass lawsuit over Windows Server licensing to proceed.

Country Trust Bank increased its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 453,946 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 25,882 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 4.0% of Country Trust Bank's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Country Trust Bank's holdings in Microsoft were worth $219,537,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth about $49,000. University of Illinois Foundation purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, Stance Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth about $54,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Up 1.5%

MSFT opened at $424.16 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $356.28 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $392.16 and a 200-day moving average of $452.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $590.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wolfe Research cut their price target on Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Citigroup cut their price target on Microsoft from $635.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Microsoft from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, January 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $576.66.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI (backed by Microsoft) launched ChatGPT Images 2.0 — improvements to OpenAI’s image capabilities strengthen the product ecosystem that Microsoft leverages via its OpenAI partnership and Azure hosting, supporting longer-term AI revenue opportunities. OpenAI Launches ChatGPT Images 2.0 – Here’s What You Need to KnowArticle
• Positive Sentiment: Large enterprise deals deepen Azure and Microsoft 365 Copilot adoption — a five-year collaboration with Stellantis and industrial showcases at Hannover Messe (and Accenture partnerships) signal expanding, sticky enterprise AI workflows that drive cloud consumption and services revenue. Microsoft Deepens Industrial AI Role With Stellantis And Hannover Messe DealsArticle
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture’s agentic factory system debuts with Microsoft integrations — another indicator of enterprise traction for Azure-based AI platforms and professional services monetization. Accenture's New Agentic Factory System Debuts With MicrosoftArticle
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor chatter and analysts expect a rebound into earnings: social-media buzz and many buy ratings highlight Azure growth and AI backlog optimism ahead of Microsoft’s April 29 report — but the stock has drawn intense debate about valuation and execution. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on Rebound Ahead of EarningsArticle
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox Game Pass price cut — the new Xbox leadership is trimming subscription prices to boost engagement; could lift user growth and retention but may compress near-term gaming revenue/margins. Microsoft cuts Game Pass subscription prices after new Xbox CEO promises to 'recommit' to gamersArticle
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup trimmed its MSFT price target from $635 to $600 but kept a buy rating — a reminder that analyst targets are being adjusted while consensus remains constructive (median targets still well above current levels). Finviz — Citigroup price target noteArticle
• Negative Sentiment: U.K. tribunal ruled Microsoft must face a £2.1B (~$2.8B) mass lawsuit alleging overcharging for Windows Server licenses on rival clouds — a sizeable litigation risk that could lead to material settlements and heightened regulatory/legal scrutiny. Microsoft must face $2.8 billion UK lawsuit over cloud computing licencesArticle
• Negative Sentiment: Analysis piece flags scrutiny of Microsoft’s AI investments and capital intensity — investors may worry about the pace, returns and governance of large AI capex and partnerships, which can pressure near-term margins and share performance. Microsoft AI Investments Face ScrutinyArticle

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. The trade was a 6.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

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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