Naples Global Advisors LLC Has $30.07 Million Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Naples Global Advisors increased its Microsoft stake by 6.3% in the second quarter to 80,602 shares valued at approximately $30.07 million, making Microsoft 1.9% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the stock.
• Microsoft’s AI and cloud outlook remains the primary bullish catalyst. Stifel upgraded the stock to Buy with a $575 price target, while Microsoft’s latest quarter beat expectations with $90.01 billion in revenue and $4.74 in EPS, up 17.7% and 29.9% year over year, respectively.
• Investors face offsetting risks, including insider selling and gaming restructuring. Insiders sold 143,009 shares over the past 90 days, while Xbox is cutting 268 positions and transferring the next Halo title to Activision; broader concerns also include heavy AI infrastructure costs.

Naples Global Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 6.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 80,602 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 4,787 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 1.9% of Naples Global Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Naples Global Advisors LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $30,066,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Frankly Finances LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at $35,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $59,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $101,000. Ramsey Quantitative Systems bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter valued at about $112,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 16.6% in the first quarter. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC now owns 422 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. 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: Stifel upgraded Microsoft to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $575 from $530. The analyst expects Azure, Copilot and other AI services to accelerate revenue while Microsoft maintains resilient margins without needing excessive spending on AI models. Microsoft upgraded as analyst sees steady margins
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft plans to invest more than $10 billion in the Gulf through 2030, funding cloud and AI infrastructure, cybersecurity, connectivity and workforce development across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait. The spending expands Azure’s international capacity and could create long-term commercial opportunities. Microsoft plans Gulf investment
• Positive Sentiment: AI monetization remains the central bullish thesis. Microsoft is pursuing broader Copilot adoption, including discounts of roughly 30% to 50% for large enterprise customers, while management highlights independent AI safety evaluators and software that controls AI agents as emerging opportunities. Microsoft plans larger Copilot discounts
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft and Coinbase disrupted an AI-enabled phishing network, reinforcing Microsoft’s cybersecurity credentials. However, the operation does not eliminate the persistent economic incentive for criminals to compromise accounts. Microsoft cuts AI phishing supply chain
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s collaboration with Photonic on quantum-computing resource estimation and its decision to give DARPA access to its Majorana 2 system enhance its technology and government relationships, but these projects are unlikely to affect near-term earnings. Microsoft opens quantum system to DARPA testing
• Negative Sentiment: Xbox is cutting 268 positions and transferring the next Halo game to Activision as part of a gaming restructuring. The move may improve efficiency but raises concerns about Microsoft’s gaming execution and follows recent layoffs. Microsoft cuts Xbox roles
• Negative Sentiment: Broader technology stocks weakened, while scrutiny of data-center water consumption and Microsoft’s heavy AI infrastructure spending adds to concerns about costs, regulation and execution.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the business's 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total transaction of $20,764,903.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 143,009 shares of company stock valued at $71,420,699 over the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MSFT shares. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Microsoft from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial downgraded Microsoft from an "outperform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Forty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $569.29.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $500.59 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.72 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. 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's 50 day moving average is $473.55 and its 200-day moving average is $424.91. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. 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. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 21.83%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.