Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by Provident Trust Co.

Key Points

• Provident Trust Co. cut its Microsoft stake by 33.1% in the second quarter, selling 3,000 shares and retaining 6,072 shares valued at approximately $2.27 million. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft insiders sold $71.4 million worth of shares over the past 90 days, including CEO Satya Nadella’s sale of 86,525 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan.
• Despite the selling, Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with revenue up 17.7% year over year, and raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share. Analysts maintain a broadly positive view, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $564.27.

Provident Trust Co. reduced its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 33.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,072 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 3,000 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 0.0% of Provident Trust Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Provident Trust Co.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $2,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Frankly Finances LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $37,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $38,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 37.4% in the second quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, 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 dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. This represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 143,009 shares of company stock valued at $71,420,699 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.4%

MSFT stock opened at $490.30 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.64 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.30, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $462.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $421.53. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $349.20 and a one year high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued 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 during 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 firm'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 posted $3.65 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.61 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. 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 dividend payout ratio is 20.27%.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend raised 8%: Microsoft increased its quarterly payout from $0.91 to $0.98 per share, payable December 10 to shareholders of record November 19. The increase signals confidence in cash generation and brings the annualized yield to approximately 0.8%, while the payout ratio remains near 20%. Microsoft announces quarterly dividend increase
• Positive Sentiment: Azure momentum remains a key catalyst: Azure revenue growth accelerated to 43% year over year in the latest quarter, with management expecting another acceleration. Azure has also surpassed $100 billion in annual sales, reinforcing the investment case for Microsoft’s cloud and agentic-AI strategy. Microsoft Azure agentic AI growth
• Positive Sentiment: Enterprise AI ecosystem is expanding: Dun & Bradstreet is integrating its commercial data graph with Microsoft Copilot Studio and Dynamics 365 agents, potentially supporting broader enterprise adoption of Microsoft’s AI tools. Dun and Bradstreet Microsoft Copilot integration
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming product and reporting updates: Microsoft’s October 7 Windows and Surface event could provide a hardware and on-device AI catalyst. Separately, plans to disclose Azure revenue should give investors greater visibility into whether AI spending is translating into sales. Microsoft Windows and Surface event
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending is the main overhang: Microsoft is reportedly targeting roughly 38 gigawatts of data-center capacity by 2032, while capital expenditures are already elevated and expected to rise again. Investors are concerned that returns from AI infrastructure may take time to materialize. Microsoft AI spending analysis
• Negative Sentiment: AI execution concerns persist: Federal agencies can begin contracting for Microsoft’s new AI government tier on October 1, but some features may not be available immediately. The gap between commitments and delivery could slow adoption or raise questions about execution. Microsoft government AI tier
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling adds a modest headwind: EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares worth approximately $20.8 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Because the transaction was scheduled in advance, it is not necessarily a bearish signal, but it may weigh marginally on sentiment.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $575.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and set a $540.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $564.27.

About Microsoft

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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