Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by NEOS Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• NEOS Investment Management increased its Microsoft stake by 10.1% in the second quarter, adding 258,756 shares to reach 2.82 million shares valued at approximately $1.05 billion. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft exceeded quarterly expectations with $4.89 in EPS and $92.28 billion in revenue, while Azure growth accelerated 48% to roughly $33.2 billion as cloud and AI demand strengthened.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with 44 Buy ratings and an average price target of $596.07. Microsoft also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share, although infrastructure constraints, planned employee buyouts and insider selling remain potential investor concerns.

NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,821,767 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 258,756 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 3.9% of NEOS Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. NEOS Investment Management LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,052,576,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Burford Brothers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.3% during the second quarter. Burford Brothers Inc. now owns 20,893 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $7,794,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares in the last quarter. AXQ Capital LP raised its stake in Microsoft by 136.6% in the second quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 13,176 shares of the software giant's stock worth $4,915,000 after buying an additional 7,606 shares in the last quarter. Fortune 45 LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 1.4% in the second quarter. Fortune 45 LLC now owns 2,533 shares of the software giant's stock worth $946,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 10.3% during the second quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC now owns 13,851 shares of the software giant's stock worth $5,167,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares during the period. Finally, Andina Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 28.5% during the second quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 1,297 shares of the software giant's stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft reported earnings of $4.89 per share versus the $4.71–$4.72 consensus and revenue of $92.28 billion, up 19% year over year and above estimates of approximately $90.6 billion. Net income increased 32%, while the company extended its streak of record quarterly revenue. Microsoft Beats Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Azure growth accelerated to 48%, generating approximately $33.2 billion in quarterly revenue. Stronger-than-expected cloud demand suggests Microsoft’s investments in artificial intelligence and Copilot-related services are beginning to translate into significant sales and profit growth. Microsoft Azure Revenue Surges
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed that commercial arrangements with OpenAI produced roughly $10 billion of revenue during the quarter, highlighting the value of the partnership but also the company’s substantial financial dependence on a single AI ecosystem. Microsoft Recorded $10 Billion in Revenue From OpenAI
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft lowered its 2026 capital-expenditure forecast to $170 billion from $175 billion, citing delays in third-party capacity. The reduction may ease cash-flow pressure, but it also raises concerns that infrastructure constraints could limit Azure growth and delay returns on AI investment. Microsoft Cuts Capex Forecast on AI Capacity Delays
• Negative Sentiment: The company is offering voluntary buyouts to roughly 60,000 employees while spending heavily on data centers. Although the effort could improve long-term efficiency, investors may view it as evidence that Microsoft is managing mounting AI-related costs. Rising interest rates also pose a valuation risk for the high-growth technology sector.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Microsoft from $660.00 to $662.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on Microsoft from $522.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, CLSA reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $596.07.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $531.01 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $551.15. The company has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.10. The company's 50 day moving average is $511.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $437.96.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.71 by $0.18. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $90.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.13 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.66 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. 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 currently 20.27%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ: MSFT is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company's principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.

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