Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC

Key Points

• Mccarter Private Wealth Services increased its Microsoft stake by 6.4% in the second quarter, owning 23,694 shares valued at approximately $8.84 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with earnings and revenue exceeding analyst expectations; revenue rose 17.7% year over year to $90.01 billion. Shares recently traded at $517.53, near their 12-month high.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share, while analysts remain broadly positive with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $571.18; risks include elevated AI spending and valuation concerns.

Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,694 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 1,418 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 3.0% of Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $8,839,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Frankly Finances LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 37.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $101,000. Finally, Glynn Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 34.2% during the 2nd quarter. Glynn Capital Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the software giant's stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of MSFT opened at $517.53 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $490.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $429.97. The stock has a market cap of $3.84 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $553.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total transaction of $20,764,903.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 143,009 shares of company stock worth $71,420,699 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure and AI demand remain the primary catalyst. Investor data and analyst commentary point to accelerating Azure demand, while Microsoft’s recent earnings showed its fastest cloud growth in four years. The improving demand is helping ease concerns that the company’s substantial AI infrastructure spending will not generate adequate returns. Ca$htag: MSFT Azure Cloud Drives Soaring Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo added Microsoft to its Q4 Tactical Ideas list and raised its price target to $725, citing Azure’s growth potential and the prospect of improved AI monetization through Copilot. The action adds to a series of bullish analyst revisions; one report noted that 52 analysts covering Microsoft currently have no sell ratings. With Azure as a Catalyst, Microsoft Is Positioned for Sustained Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s OpenAI relationship provides potential additional value. Investors are increasingly focused on Microsoft’s stake and commercial partnership with OpenAI, particularly ahead of a possible OpenAI initial public offering that could provide a market reference for the investment. OpenAI’s Future IPO Keeps Me Buying Microsoft
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft introduced new real-time AI speech models for customer-service agents, multilingual assistants and voice interfaces. The products broaden Microsoft’s enterprise AI offering and could support additional cloud consumption and software revenue. Microsoft Targets Contact Center Market With Real-Time AI Voice Models
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting Microsoft’s October 7 Surface and Windows event. New hardware or Windows updates could support the ecosystem, although the event has not yet produced a material earnings catalyst. Microsoft Stock Notches Up Ahead of the Surface Show
• Negative Sentiment: Risks include heavy AI capital spending, valuation concerns and broader market concentration. Critics argue that rising data-center capacity could pressure compute pricing and returns, while strategists warn that a market correction could disproportionately affect megacap technology stocks. Microsoft’s dividend remains affordable, but AI infrastructure spending and lease commitments could limit future dividend growth. Morgan Stanley Strategist Sees Market Drawdown Potential

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Raymond James Financial cut Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. CLSA reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Forty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $571.18.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, gaming products and business solutions. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is best known for the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office productivity software. Microsoft is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, and serves consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

Microsoft's productivity and business offerings include Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, along with collaboration tools including Teams.

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