Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Position Lowered by Corient Private Wealth LP

Key Points

• Corient Private Wealth LP cut its Microsoft stake by 9.5% in the second quarter, selling 539,911 shares and retaining 5.13 million shares worth approximately $1.91 billion. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $4.89 and revenue of $92.28 billion, up 18.8% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $609.54.
• Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share, or $3.92 annually, while investors continue to scrutinize its roughly $170 billion AI spending plan, planned $25 billion debt offering and pressure on cloud margins.

Corient Private Wealth LP decreased its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,128,574 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 539,911 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 2.6% of Corient Private Wealth LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Corient Private Wealth LP owned about 0.07% of Microsoft worth $1,913,062,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Box Hill Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 0.5% in the second quarter. Box Hill Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,272 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,593,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,473 shares of the software giant's stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Sequent Planning LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Sequent Planning LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,382,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 3.8% during the second quarter. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC now owns 687 shares of the software giant's stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mann Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.3% during the second quarter. Mann Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,921 shares of the software giant's stock worth $717,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Yorkville Ives initiated coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $615.00 price target on the stock. Phillip Securities cut Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Microsoft from $662.00 to $722.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Microsoft from $600.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $609.54.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $521.91 on Monday. The business's 50-day moving average is $512.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $438.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.88 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.21. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $551.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. Microsoft had a net margin of 41.17% and a return on equity of 31.28%. The company had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $90.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.13 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 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 currently 19.00%.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft delivered a strong fiscal first quarter, with revenue of $92.28 billion and EPS of $4.89, both above expectations. Azure revenue surged 48%, while Microsoft Cloud revenue rose 30%, reinforcing the view that AI demand is translating into meaningful cloud growth. Microsoft Earnings Expose a Growing Divide in the Magnificent 7 AI Trade
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued second-quarter revenue guidance of $96.0 billion to $97.1 billion, above the $95.7 billion consensus estimate. Analysts responded with multiple price-target increases, including targets of $630 to $680, and Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to “strong buy.”
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong cash generation and diversified enterprise business continue to distinguish it from rivals facing sharper cash-flow concerns. Analysts argue that Azure, Copilot, AI agents and Microsoft’s security products provide several ways to monetize AI. The expanded Estée Lauder partnership, which will extend Copilot to more than 14,000 employees, offers another example of enterprise adoption. Estée Lauder and Microsoft Strategic Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s voluntary exit offer for approximately 60,000 employees may improve productivity and redirect resources toward AI, but it also highlights a significant restructuring as the company shifts toward more automated, equipment-intensive operations. Microsoft’s 60,000-Person Buyout Offer
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Microsoft’s capital intensity. The company plans roughly $170 billion of AI-related capital spending, while also arranging a $25 billion bond sale—the first major U.S. debt offering since 2017—to fund its buildout. Rising borrowing costs increase scrutiny of future AI returns. Microsoft Plans to Raise $25 Billion in Debt
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly capital spending was below analyst expectations because third-party AI-chip and data-center capacity was delayed, pushing some capacity into the first half of 2027. While management described this as a supply issue rather than weaker demand, the miss hurt AI infrastructure suppliers and revived concerns about the pace of expansion.
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft’s cloud gross margin is reportedly narrowing as chip, power, data-center and labor costs rise. With the Nasdaq 100 down sharply during October amid fears of an AI spending bubble, investors are demanding proof that Microsoft’s large backlog will convert into profitable cash flow—not merely future revenue.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. This represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 150,314 shares of company stock valued at $75,404,992. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ: MSFT is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company's principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.

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