Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by Metropolis Capital Ltd

Key Points

• Metropolis Capital Ltd cut its Microsoft stake by 20.2% in Q3, selling 159,620 shares and retaining 630,855 shares worth $326.8 million; Microsoft represents about 10.3% of the firm's holdings and is its second-largest position.
• Major institutional investors remain heavily invested—Vanguard, State Street and Geode all increased positions, Norges Bank reportedly initiated a new ~<$50.5 billion> stake, and institutional ownership stands at about 71.13%.
• Microsoft beat expectations (Q: $4.13 EPS vs. $3.65 expected; revenue $77.67B vs. $75.49B) and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91 ($3.64 annualized, ~0.8% yield), with a market cap near $3.56 trillion and a consensus analyst target around $630.76.

Metropolis Capital Ltd reduced its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 20.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 630,855 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 159,620 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 10.3% of Metropolis Capital Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Metropolis Capital Ltd's holdings in Microsoft were worth $326,751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant's stock worth $350,712,742,000 after purchasing an additional 13,691,572 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Microsoft by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 299,196,519 shares of the software giant's stock worth $148,823,341,000 after buying an additional 3,166,275 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 179,001,751 shares of the software giant's stock worth $88,714,256,000 after buying an additional 3,532,054 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,493,678,000. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 564,387.1% in the second quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 90,549,369 shares of the software giant's stock worth $45,040,162,000 after acquiring an additional 90,533,328 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Office 365 subscription growth is accelerating (commercial + consumer uptake, higher-tier migration and AI features boosting revenue per user), which supports recurring revenue and margin resilience. MSFT's Office 365 Subscription Growth Picks Up
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft launched agentic AI solutions for retailers (automation across merchandising, store ops and fulfillment) — expands monetization avenues for Azure/Copilot in commerce. Microsoft Introduces Agentic AI Solutions for Retailers
• Positive Sentiment: PayPal will power Copilot Checkout flows, a partnership that helps drive payments volume inside Microsoft’s Copilot ecosystem and could lift monetization of consumer workflows. PayPal Teams With Microsoft to Power Checkout in Copilot
• Positive Sentiment: Prominent commentators and analysts remain constructive — Jim Cramer voiced continued confidence in Microsoft, and firms (Wedbush/Jefferies/Scotiabank coverage) reiterate upside tied to Azure/AI momentum. These endorsements support investor sentiment. Jim Cramer Says “Going Forward, I Still Feel Pretty Good About Microsoft”
• Neutral Sentiment: EU digital rule overhaul reportedly won’t impose heavy-handed restrictions on big tech — reduces a regulatory overhang but is broadly industry-wide news. Big Tech spared strict rules in EU digital rule overhaul
• Negative Sentiment: Reports say AI‑capable PC sales came in below expectations, denting the near‑term hardware/AI upgrade narrative that had been a tailwind for Microsoft’s Windows/partner ecosystem. “AI Confuses Them More Than it Helps…”: Microsoft Stock Slips as AI PC Sales Less Than Expected
• Negative Sentiment: Rumors of large job cuts circulated (company communications called the figures inaccurate), creating headline risk around rising AI costs and cost‑base adjustments. Short-term volatility can follow such reports even when later denied. “100 Percent Made Up”: Microsoft Stock Slips in Response to Layoff Rumors
• Negative Sentiment: Local opposition emerged after Microsoft was identified as the developer behind a contentious Michigan data‑center proposal — potential permitting delays and PR drag. Microsoft behind controversial data center proposal in Michigan

Microsoft Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $479.28 on Monday. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $555.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.56 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.09, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.07. The stock's 50 day moving average is $488.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $503.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $77.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.49 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 35.71%.Microsoft's revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.30 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 25.89%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total transaction of $6,266,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total transaction of $19,967,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 461,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at $239,402,668.08. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,100 shares of company stock valued at $27,598,872. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on MSFT shares. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $625.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Robert W. Baird started coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, November 14th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. Daiwa Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $640.00 to $630.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $630.76.

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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