Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Increases Stock Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management increased its Microsoft stake by 5.2% in the second quarter, purchasing 1,003,560 additional shares. Its 20.16 million shares were valued at approximately $7.52 billion, making Microsoft its third-largest holding.
• Microsoft reported strong quarterly results, with revenue rising 17.7% year over year to $90.01 billion and earnings of $4.74 per share, exceeding estimates. Analysts remain broadly positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $578.73.
• AI expansion remains the central opportunity and risk: Azure, Copilot and new AI-focused hardware support the growth outlook, while debt-funded infrastructure spending and concerns about limited Copilot usage could pressure returns. Microsoft also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 5.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,161,916 shares of the software giant's stock after buying an additional 1,003,560 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 4.2% of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.27% of Microsoft worth $7,520,881,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Frankly Finances LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth about $35,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 37.4% in the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth approximately $101,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New AI hardware and Windows strategy: Microsoft unveiled the $2,599 Surface Laptop Ultra, powered by Nvidia’s RTX chip, allowing users to run AI models and agents locally rather than through the cloud. The launch could strengthen Windows’ position in AI PCs, support device demand and create new opportunities for Microsoft’s software ecosystem. Microsoft to sell $2,599 Surface Laptop Ultra containing Nvidia AI chip
• Positive Sentiment: AI monetization remains the core bull case: Analysts and investors continue to point to Azure growth, Copilot revenue potential and Microsoft’s perceived strength in AI security and enterprise trust. Evercore ISI reiterated a Buy rating and raised its target to $635, while Melius Research upgraded the stock to Buy with a $665 target. Microsoft: AI-Driven Azure Upside Spurs Buy Rating and Target Price Hike to $635
• Positive Sentiment: Strong fundamentals provide support: Microsoft’s latest reported quarter exceeded expectations, with revenue up 17.7% year over year and earnings above consensus. Optimism ahead of the next earnings report is also supported by reported Azure momentum and a history of earnings beats.
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings date: Microsoft will release fiscal 2027 first-quarter results after the market close on October 28. The date gives investors a near-term catalyst, but it may also keep attention focused on Azure growth, Copilot usage, capital spending and free cash flow. Microsoft announces quarterly earnings release date
• Negative Sentiment: Debt-funded AI expansion raises risk: Microsoft is issuing additional debt to finance data centers and AI hardware. While this supports capacity growth, investors are increasingly concerned about leverage, declining free cash flow and the possibility that AI infrastructure spending becomes excessive or bubble-like.
• Negative Sentiment: Copilot utilization concerns: Usage-tracking commentary suggests many employees at companies with Microsoft Copilot licenses use the service minimally. If low engagement leads to weaker renewals or slower seat expansion, it could challenge assumptions that Copilot will quickly become a major source of recurring AI revenue. Bad News for Microsoft: Basically Zero AI Use for Most Employees on Copilot

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSFT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $575.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $440.00 price objective on Microsoft in a research note on Monday, September 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, September 28th. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of Microsoft from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Forty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $578.73.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value 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 $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 143,009 shares of company stock worth $71,420,699. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $529.76 on Thursday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $553.72. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $498.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $433.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $3.93 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.10.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.65 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.27%.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, gaming products and business solutions. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is best known for the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office productivity software. Microsoft is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, and serves consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

Microsoft's productivity and business offerings include Microsoft 365 applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, along with collaboration tools including Teams.

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