Snider Financial Group cut its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,345 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 1,672 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 4.7% of Snider Financial Group's holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Snider Financial Group's holdings in Microsoft were worth $17,577,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its holdings in Microsoft by 27.0% in the 1st quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 1,016 shares of the software giant's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 12,658 shares of the software giant's stock worth $5,658,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 410.4% in the 3rd quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,144,000 after purchasing an additional 2,138 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Microsoft by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 2,374 shares of the software giant's stock worth $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 23,097 shares of the software giant's stock worth $9,735,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Activity
In other news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.
More Microsoft News
Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Major long‑term investment: Microsoft committed A$25B (~$18B) to expand Azure and AI capacity in Australia through 2029, supporting future cloud/Azure revenue and global infrastructure scale. Microsoft to invest $18 billion in Australia
- Positive Sentiment: Product and security strengthening: Microsoft is integrating advanced models (including Anthropic’s Mythos) into its security development lifecycle — a move that can reduce risk and improve enterprise trust in its AI offerings. Microsoft to integrate Anthropic's Mythos
- Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming catalyst: Microsoft reports fiscal Q3 earnings on April 29 — analysts and investors see the print as pivotal for clarity on AI monetization, Azure growth and near‑term margins. Prediction: Microsoft's April 29 Earnings...
- Neutral Sentiment: LinkedIn leadership change: LinkedIn’s CEO transition (Daniel Shapero named) is operationally relevant but not a core driver of Microsoft’s AI/cloud thesis. LinkedIn names new CEO
- Negative Sentiment: Historic voluntary buyouts announced: Microsoft is offering voluntary retirement/buyout packages to up to ~7% of U.S. staff — the first program of this scale in its history. Investors view this as a signal of large reorganization and near‑term restructuring costs tied to a major AI pivot. Microsoft Targets About 7% of Its U.S. Workers With Buyout Offer
- Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and cost concerns: Reports linking the buyout to massive AI spending (estimates in coverage range into the tens of billions to $100B+ scale) have spooked investors, prompting a sell‑off amid uncertainty over timing of returns on that spending. Microsoft Falls 4% as $110 Billion AI Bet Forces Historic Employee Buyout
- Negative Sentiment: Analyst/price‑target pressure: Some shops trimmed targets or adopted cautious ratings as they weigh heavy near‑term AI investment against growth — adding to downside risk into earnings. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowers PT
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. DZ Bank reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, New Street Research upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $670.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $575.34.
Read Our Latest Research Report on MSFT
Microsoft Stock Down 4.0%
NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $415.75 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $393.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $451.84. The company has a market capitalization of $3.09 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $356.28 and a 1-year high of $555.45.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The firm had revenue of $81.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.23 EPS. The company's revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is 22.76%.
Microsoft 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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