Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC

Key Points

• Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 6.8% in Q4, buying an additional 6,328 shares to hold 98,751 shares worth about $47.76 million, representing roughly 3.3% of its portfolio and its fourth-largest holding.
• Microsoft beat Q3 expectations with $4.27 EPS (vs. $4.06 estimate) and $82.89 billion in revenue (up 18.3% YoY); the stock carries a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $562.44, though analyst targets vary materially.
• Institutional investors own 71.13% of MSFT with large moves from firms like Norges Bank, Nuveen, UBS and Northern Trust, while insiders showed mixed activity—Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares and EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares.

Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 98,751 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 6,328 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 3.3% of Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $47,758,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at about $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the first quarter valued at about $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 500.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% in 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 in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MSFT. KeyCorp cut their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Microsoft from $675.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $515.00 price target (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Microsoft from $595.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Microsoft from $620.00 to $515.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $562.44.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $420.93 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $356.28 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The stock's 50 day moving average is $396.79 and its 200-day moving average is $445.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $3.13 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.06, a PEG ratio of 1.49 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, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The company had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Top analyst price‑target upgrades lift sentiment; one note cited ~60% upside to a new street‑high target, supporting buy interest. Microsoft Stock Lands a New Street‑High Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: An influential research shop lifted its price target materially (Arete to $870), signaling strong conviction that AI/cloud execution will drive long‑term upside. Arete Research Boosts Microsoft Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results continue to show robust AI/cloud revenue growth and EPS beats, underpinning the bull case for durable top‑line momentum. Microsoft Q3 Revenues Jump 18% on AI & Cloud
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying: Fisher Asset Management and other funds have increased stakes, which can provide support to the stock. Fisher Asset Management Boosts Microsoft Stake
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox product pruning (Copilot discontinuation) trimmed consumer AI spend and was interpreted positively by some investors as discipline on unprofitable initiatives. Xbox Discontinues Copilot
• Neutral Sentiment: Street reaction is mixed: some firms trimmed targets but kept Buy ratings, reflecting split views on near‑term capex vs. long‑term AI growth. Here’s What the Street Thinks About Microsoft Post‑Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Big AI data‑center buildout is driving a large ($190B) capex guide and discussions about shelving Microsoft’s 2030 hourly clean‑energy match target — a potential ESG/regulatory and reputational headwind. Microsoft May Shelve 2030 Clean Energy Target
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain uneasy about the size and timing of AI spending; some analysts warn margin pressure and elevated capex could weigh on near‑term returns. Is Microsoft Stock an Undervalued Stock to Buy?
• Negative Sentiment: Security concern: reports of a new hacker group exploiting Microsoft Teams add short‑term risk around remediation costs and customer confidence in collaboration tools. New Hacker Group Exploits Teams

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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