Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its Microsoft stake by 3.3% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 11.16 million shares valued at approximately $4.13 billion. Microsoft is the insurer’s largest portfolio holding, and institutional investors own 71.13% of the stock.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with revenue up 17.7% year over year to $90.01 billion and EPS of $4.74, beating analyst expectations. Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $560.27.
• Potential concerns include heavy AI infrastructure spending that could pressure margins and cash flow, alongside recent insider selling totaling 37,310 shares. Microsoft also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, representing a 0.7% annualized yield.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 3.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,164,853 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 352,598 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 3.6% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.15% of Microsoft worth $4,132,789,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings 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. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results remain the primary bullish catalyst. Microsoft reported revenue growth of 17.7% and earnings of $4.74 per share, well above consensus, reinforcing confidence in Azure, cloud demand and AI monetization. Magnificent Seven Earnings Remain Robust: MSFT, AAPL
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains supportive. Wells Fargo raised its Microsoft price target to a Street-high $700 from $650 and maintained an overweight rating, citing the company’s growth prospects and ecosystem strength. Wells Fargo Raises Microsoft Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is expanding its AI and cloud ecosystem through partnerships, including S&P Global data in Microsoft 365 Copilot, broader enterprise adoption in Brazil and Sionic’s instant-payment service on Microsoft Marketplace. These initiatives could support platform usage and recurring revenue over time. S&P Global Expands Collaboration with Microsoft
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may introduce another Maia AI processor as early as September highlight its strategy to use custom chips to improve Azure AI efficiency. The move could reduce costs and reliance on outside suppliers, but the financial benefits will depend on successful scaling. Microsoft Stock Drops While Maia Chip Ambitions Expand
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are concerned that Microsoft’s rapidly rising AI infrastructure spending could pressure margins, cash flow and returns before new capacity generates sufficient revenue. The stock’s sharp rally since the earnings report also increases profit-taking and valuation sensitivity. Microsoft's AI Data Center Push: Growth Engine or Capex Trap?
• Negative Sentiment: A newly disclosed Windows zero-day vulnerability that may enable system-wide access adds reputational, remediation and potential liability concerns. Separate reports of pending investor lawsuits contribute to a cautious tone, although neither issue has yet altered Microsoft’s fundamental earnings outlook. New Windows Zero-Day Bug Published

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 37,310 shares of company stock worth $17,256,219 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on MSFT. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective 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. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $575.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Mizuho lowered their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating and set a $510.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, DZ Bank reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $560.27.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $492.43 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $3.66 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.42, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.11. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $553.72. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $408.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $407.67.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.

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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