Nwam LLC reduced its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 5.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 229,556 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 13,220 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up 4.9% of Nwam LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Nwam LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $84,975,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $50,664,631,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 56,160.8% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 60,116,384 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,073,486,000 after buying an additional 60,009,531 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the first quarter valued at approximately $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 500.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 59,543,261 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $30,840,432,000 after acquiring an additional 49,618,571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 49,640.3% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $14,905,904,000 after acquiring an additional 29,906,791 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Trending Headlines about Microsoft
Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft reported fiscal Q4 revenue of approximately $90.0 billion, up 18% year over year and above the $87.6 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted earnings of $4.74 per share also exceeded expectations of $4.21, marking the company’s 14th consecutive “double beat.” Microsoft Q4 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
- Positive Sentiment: Azure revenue grew 43%, exceeding analysts’ expectations of roughly 40%, and the cloud platform surpassed $100 billion in annual revenue. The results eased concerns that Microsoft’s AI infrastructure investments may be outpacing customer demand. Microsoft Tops Quarterly Cloud Growth Estimates
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft said Microsoft 365 Copilot reached 30 million paid seats, providing evidence of growing monetization for its AI products. The company also recorded a $3.2 billion gain from its Anthropic investment, although returns from its OpenAI investment were more mixed. Azure Crosses $100 Billion in Annual Revenue
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft maintained its AI capital-expenditure outlook rather than following Alphabet’s recent increase. Investors viewed the spending discipline as supportive of margins and free cash flow, while first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $89.9 billion to $91.0 billion was slightly above consensus. Microsoft Keeps Capex Forecast Unchanged
- Neutral Sentiment: Investors had positioned for an unusually large post-earnings move, with options implying roughly a 6% to 7% swing. This elevated volatility reflects the importance of Microsoft’s results to the broader AI investment theme.
- Negative Sentiment: Microsoft faces a U.K. regulatory investigation into whether customers were misled about Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscription pricing. The probe creates potential reputational and compliance risks, though its near-term financial impact is unclear. UK Regulator Investigates Microsoft Over 365 Subscriptions
- Negative Sentiment: Disney’s decision to replace GitHub Copilot with OpenAI’s Codex highlights intensifying competition in AI coding tools. Multiple shareholder lawsuits concerning alleged Copilot and Azure disclosures also remain an overhang.
Microsoft Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $390.54 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.90 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.13. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $396.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $405.74.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.7 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.67%.
Insider Transactions at Microsoft
In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value 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 approximately $50,928,792.23. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research analysts have weighed in on MSFT shares. DZ Bank reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $525.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Microsoft from an "outperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $554.00.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Microsoft
Microsoft Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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