Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by Narwhal Capital Management

Key Points

• Narwhal Capital Management reduced its Microsoft stake by 1.1% in the second quarter, selling 1,843 shares; Microsoft remained its fifth-largest holding at approximately $60.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with 43 Buy ratings, four Holds and one Sell, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $569.29. Oppenheimer recently raised its target to $570, citing Microsoft’s enterprise AI strategy.
• Microsoft’s shares were up 3.7%, supported by its redesigned Copilot platform and strong quarterly results, including revenue growth of 17.7% and EPS of $4.74. However, heavy AI infrastructure spending, capacity constraints and potentially less predictable usage-based Copilot revenue remain risks.

Narwhal Capital Management cut its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 1.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 162,292 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,843 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up approximately 4.2% of Narwhal Capital Management's holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Narwhal Capital Management's holdings in Microsoft were worth $60,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Frankly Finances LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $35,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $101,000. Ramsey Quantitative Systems acquired a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $112,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 16.6% during the first quarter. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC now owns 422 shares of the software giant's stock worth $156,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on MSFT. Mizuho decreased their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-three 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 MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $569.29.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft unveiled a redesigned Copilot “super app” that combines access to Office applications with coding tools, autonomous AI agents and an Autopilot feature. The initiative is aimed primarily at business users and could improve enterprise adoption, usage and monetization of Microsoft’s AI offerings. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer raised its Microsoft price target to $570, citing the company’s shift toward enterprise AI agents and a billing model tied more closely to customer usage. Other recent analyst targets have also moved higher, reinforcing expectations for sustained Azure and AI growth. Oppenheimer target article
• Positive Sentiment: Investors appear more confident that Microsoft can benefit from AI without depending on a single large-model provider. Its Azure cloud platform, Microsoft 365 ecosystem and enterprise distribution provide multiple avenues for converting AI investment into recurring revenue. MarketWatch article
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy bullish options activity, including a large call spread, suggests traders are positioning for additional upside. Technical analysts identified a potential move toward approximately $555, although this is market positioning rather than a fundamental forecast. Barchart options article
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market gains, led by AI stocks, provided an additional tailwind. However, elevated oil prices, Treasury yields and uncertainty over potential Federal Reserve policy changes remain important macroeconomic risks.
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is moving away from a consumer-focused personal-assistant strategy and concentrating Copilot on workplace use. The usage-based approach could unlock greater revenue, but it may also make sales less predictable than traditional subscriptions if customer adoption is slower than expected. Financial Post article
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to monitor Microsoft’s substantial AI infrastructure spending, data-center capacity constraints and a reported 277-job reduction in Washington. These factors could pressure near-term margins even as Azure demand remains strong.

Microsoft Stock Up 3.7%

MSFT opened at $516.17 on Friday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $477.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $426.17. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $553.72. The stock has a market cap of $3.83 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. 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 (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.65 EPS. Microsoft's revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This is a boost from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is 20.27%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the 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 owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This 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 143,009 shares of company stock valued at $71,420,699 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital solutions for consumers, businesses and public-sector organizations. Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Teams collaboration software, Dynamics business applications and Azure cloud computing services.

The company also operates LinkedIn, GitHub and Xbox, which includes gaming consoles, video games and related online services.

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