RKL Wealth Management LLC Has $26.89 Million Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• RKL Wealth Management cut its MSFT stake by 10.7%, selling 6,228 shares to hold 51,916 shares valued at $26.89 million, representing 2.3% of RKL’s portfolio and its 9th largest holding.
• Microsoft beat quarterly expectations and declared a dividend: Q EPS $4.14 vs. $3.86 expected with revenue $81.27B (+16.7% YoY), and a $0.91 quarterly dividend (annual $3.64, ~0.9% yield).
• AI momentum vs. regulatory risk: New Copilot Cowork rollout, an E7 Microsoft 365 bundle and a dual‑model Azure strategy support cloud growth, but the Anthropic–Pentagon dispute and recent insider selling create regulatory and sentiment headwinds.

RKL Wealth Management LLC cut its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 51,916 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 6,228 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 2.3% of RKL Wealth Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. RKL Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $26,890,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 1st quarter valued at $18,733,827,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in 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 worth $14,905,904,000 after acquiring an additional 29,906,791 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Microsoft by 2.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant's stock worth $350,712,742,000 after acquiring an additional 13,691,572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Microsoft by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant's stock worth $35,316,535,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,470 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.9%

MSFT opened at $405.76 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company's 50-day moving average is $432.22 and its 200 day moving average is $478.00.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Copilot Cowork (Anthropic’s Claude) rollout strengthens Microsoft’s enterprise AI roadmap and should drive Azure cloud consumption and seat-based revenue growth. Microsoft taps Anthropic for Copilot Cowork in push for AI agents
• Positive Sentiment: New E7 $99/user Microsoft 365 bundle (Copilot + enterprise agents) could accelerate Copilot adoption, raise ARPU and create stickier recurring revenue. Microsoft adds higher-priced Office tier with Copilot
• Positive Sentiment: Azure AI momentum and the company’s dual-model strategy (supporting both Anthropic and OpenAI models) sustain long-term cloud growth and give Microsoft optionality regardless of which models customers prefer. Microsoft Positioned to Win AI Race With Dual-Model Strategy
• Positive Sentiment: Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 — provides income support and signals capital-return discipline. Microsoft announces quarterly dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft filed an amicus brief supporting Anthropic’s request to pause the Pentagon’s supply-chain designation — this preserves customer access to Claude (and Azure consumption) but keeps MSFT exposed to an evolving regulatory/geopolitical story. Microsoft files amicus brief in support of Anthropic's lawsuit with US DOD
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst commentary: some see the YTD pullback as a buying opportunity while others point to slower near-term Copilot enterprise rollouts — expect headline-driven intraday swings. Should You Buy Microsoft At $400?
• Negative Sentiment: Anthropic’s Pentagon dispute (supply‑chain designation and ensuing lawsuit) raises regulatory and policy risk that can spill into Microsoft given the partnership and federal contracting exposure. Anthropic sues to block Pentagon blacklisting
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment pressure: an EVP disclosed a multi‑million dollar sale (12,321 shares) and short interest rose in February — both can amplify downside in a thin-volume, news-driven session. SEC Form 4 — Kathleen T. Hogan sale

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $397.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, February 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Bank of America cut their price target on Microsoft from $640.00 to $520.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $591.95.

Microsoft Company Profile

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).

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.