Simplicity Wealth LLC Purchases 32,532 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Simplicity Wealth increased its Microsoft position by 61.1% in the second quarter, acquiring 32,532 shares and bringing its total holdings to 85,761 shares valued at approximately $32 million.
• Microsoft insiders sold 143,009 shares worth about $71.4 million during the latest quarter, while institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $578.73. Microsoft also exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.98 per share.

Simplicity Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 61.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,761 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 32,532 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.1% of Simplicity Wealth LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Simplicity Wealth LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $31,991,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Friedenthal Financial grew its holdings in Microsoft by 6.2% during the first quarter. Friedenthal Financial now owns 431 shares of the software giant's stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Sequent Planning LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 0.7% in the first quarter. Sequent Planning LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $1,382,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.5% in the first quarter. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC now owns 5,543 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $2,052,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. American Investment Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 3.1% in the first quarter. American Investment Services Inc. now owns 876 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the software giant's stock worth $915,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares in the company, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 143,009 shares of company stock worth $71,420,699. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. CLSA restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Phillip Securities cut shares of Microsoft from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $522.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Forty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $578.73.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.8%

MSFT stock opened at $529.30 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $553.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.93 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.47, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.10. The business's fifty day moving average price is $495.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $432.04.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced 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. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. Microsoft's quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders 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 represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade and higher price target: Melius Research upgraded Microsoft from “Hold” to “Buy” and set a $665 target, arguing that corporate concerns about AI safety, governance and security could increase demand for Microsoft’s enterprise tools. BNP Paribas also reportedly raised its forecast to $604, citing Azure growth, Copilot consumption-based pricing and the integration of OpenAI-related revenue. Melius Research upgrades Microsoft
• Positive Sentiment: AI and cloud momentum remain the core catalyst: Investors continue to focus on strong Azure demand, expanding AI infrastructure requirements and Copilot adoption. Microsoft is increasingly viewed as a relatively dependable enterprise AI leader, with its installed base, cloud platform and security products potentially giving it an advantage as businesses seek trusted AI solutions. Microsoft viewed as an AI leader
• Positive Sentiment: Upcoming Windows and Surface event: Microsoft’s October 7 event will highlight on-device AI and could provide updates on Windows, Surface and Copilot monetization. The event is being watched for evidence that AI can reinvigorate the devices business while complementing faster-growing cloud operations. Microsoft Windows and Surface event
• Neutral Sentiment: Internal AI model shift: Microsoft is reportedly steering employees away from Anthropic’s Claude toward internally developed AI models. This could reduce costs and dependence on outside providers, but investors will watch whether Microsoft maintains performance and enterprise customer confidence.
• Negative Sentiment: Risks include valuation, spending and rates: Microsoft’s strong recent rally has increased valuation concerns, while substantial capital expenditures needed for data centers could pressure free cash flow. Rising Treasury yields may also weigh on richly valued AI stocks. Rising Treasury yields and AI stocks
• Negative Sentiment: Isolated selling signals: A member of Congress disclosed a sale of Microsoft shares ahead of earnings season. The trade is a limited sentiment indicator rather than a fundamental development, but it may attract attention after reports that Microsoft insiders have sold shares without reported purchases in recent months. Congressman sells Microsoft stock

About Microsoft

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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