Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. Sells 8,343 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Neville Rodie & Shaw cut its Microsoft stake by 5.6%, selling 8,343 shares in the third quarter; it retained 140,817 shares valued at about $72.2 million.
• Microsoft beat quarterly estimates, reporting $4.89 in earnings per share and $92.28 billion in revenue; revenue grew 18.8% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share.
• Microsoft is reportedly scaling back some rented AI-computing capacity and partner commitments, prompting questions about AI demand and infrastructure costs. Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $609.54.

Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 5.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,817 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 8,343 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 5.1% of Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $72,225,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,338,370,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $18,306,443,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth $6,928,664,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth $5,653,812,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at about $4,000,706,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total transaction of $3,984,293.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 555,396 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $302,924,086.32. The trade was a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the company's 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 in the company, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. 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 90 days, insiders sold 135,504 shares of company stock worth $68,138,024. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock traded down $5.32 during trading on Friday, reaching $530.61. 26,926,992 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 22,422,492. The company has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.69, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.05. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $349.20 and a 52-week high of $559.15. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $516.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $440.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.22.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 period last year, the company posted $4.13 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 19.00%.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s free-cash-flow position may offer some reassurance: an analysis notes that several other major AI hyperscalers are generating negative free cash flow, while Microsoft is generating positive cash flow. Is Microsoft Getting Enough Credit for Better Free Cash Flow Compared to its Peers?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Microsoft plans to reduce the number of neocloud partners it uses, wind down rented AI capacity from Oracle, and declined a Texas data-center expansion with Nscale. This could help control costs and give Microsoft tighter oversight as it builds its own infrastructure, but the implications for capacity growth remain uncertain. Microsoft plans to use fewer neoclouds as AI buildout shows signs of strain
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may read the canceled or reduced AI-computing commitments as a sign that Microsoft is reassessing demand, project timing, or returns on its data-center spending. The shift comes as reports highlight construction delays and the rising cost of meeting a growing AI backlog, intensifying scrutiny of whether heavy investment will pay off. Microsoft is winding down Oracle deal to rent AI cloud capacity, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: Broader unease around AI spending and tech-market volatility may also weigh on MSFT, as investors question the scale of data-center investment relative to future cash returns. Microsoft and Oracle's AI ambitions are suddenly a lot more expensive

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $440.00 price objective on Microsoft in a report on Monday, September 21st. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Microsoft from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on Microsoft from $586.00 to $595.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $609.54.

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. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington.

Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.

Microsoft serves customers around the world through its products, online platforms, and network of business partners.

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