Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stake Lifted by Clearstead Trust LLC

Key Points

• Clearstead Trust LLC increased its Microsoft stake by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 57,454 shares worth about $27.8 million. Microsoft is now the firm’s fifth-largest position and makes up 4.4% of its portfolio.
• Microsoft continues to draw attention from institutions and analysts, with hedge funds owning 71.13% of the stock and Wall Street maintaining a Moderate Buy consensus. The average price target stands at $561.20.
• Recent company updates remain mixed but mostly positive: Microsoft launched its Majorana 2 quantum processor and expanded Microsoft 365 Copilot to more than 500,000 NHS England staff, while also facing a security investigation tied to hacked GitHub open-source projects.

Clearstead Trust LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 57,454 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 1,246 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 4.4% of Clearstead Trust LLC's holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Clearstead Trust LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $27,786,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. PMG Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock worth $36,347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 949,901 shares of the software giant's stock worth $493,860,000 after purchasing an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant's stock worth $6,041,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2,332.1% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,746,017 shares of the software giant's stock worth $3,262,509,000 after purchasing an additional 6,468,645 shares in the last quarter. 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 unveiled its Majorana 2 quantum processor, reinforcing its long-term innovation pipeline and boosting optimism around its advanced computing ambitions. Microsoft Announces Majorana 2 Quantum Chip as Wedbush Calls It Another ‘Validation’ for the Industry
• Positive Sentiment: NHS England is rolling out Microsoft 365 Copilot to more than 500,000 staff, a large enterprise win that highlights demand for Microsoft’s AI tools and could expand recurring software revenue. NHS England accelerates AI adoption with Microsoft 365 Copilot to improve service delivery, reduce costs and create more time for care
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to argue that Microsoft’s AI strategy and ecosystem strength support long-term upside, which may help limit downside on weakness. Microsoft’s AI Independence and Ecosystem Momentum Underpin Buy Rating; $620 Price Target Reaffirmed
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from investors and media continues to frame Microsoft as a strong AI and hyperscaler leader, but also notes ongoing debate about valuation and how much AI momentum is already priced in. Dryden Pence on GOOGL "Dominant" AI Position, META "Behind," MSFT Still Strong
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is investigating a hack of its open-source GitHub projects that injected password-stealing malware, which is a reputational and security concern for the company’s developer ecosystem. Microsoft's open source tools were hacked to steal passwords of AI developers
• Negative Sentiment: Reid Hoffman is leaving Microsoft’s board, and David Tepper reportedly cut most of Appaloosa’s Microsoft stake, adding to investor scrutiny around sentiment and governance. Reid Hoffman Exits Microsoft Board A Decade After LinkedIn Sale — Stock Has Soared 570%

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,928,792.23. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and issued a $525.00 price objective (up from $450.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Microsoft from $641.00 to $646.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. China Renaissance reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $575.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Forty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $561.20.

Microsoft Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $411.74 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $356.28 and a 52-week high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.06 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $408.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $430.96.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The business had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.46 EPS. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Microsoft

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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