Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd. Has $10.70 Million Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Sterling Investment Advisors increased its Microsoft stake by 10.6% in the first quarter, ending with 28,891 shares valued at approximately $10.70 million. Microsoft represents about 1.8% of the firm’s portfolio, while institutional investors collectively own 71.13% of the stock.
• Microsoft reported a strong quarter, with adjusted EPS of $4.74 versus the $4.24 consensus and revenue of $90.01 billion versus $87.62 billion expected. Azure growth reached 43%, annual Azure revenue topped $100 billion, and paid Microsoft 365 Copilot seats exceeded 30 million.
• Shares were trading up 15.5%, supported by improved AI-growth sentiment and favorable analyst views; Microsoft has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $558.64. Risks include reported cloud-security vulnerabilities, regulatory scrutiny of Microsoft 365 marketing, and ongoing shareholder lawsuits.

Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd. grew its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 10.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,891 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 2,774 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.8% of Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $10,695,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 287.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure growth exceeded expectations: Azure revenue increased 43%, ahead of roughly 40% analyst expectations, and annual Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion for the first time. The performance eased concerns that demand for AI infrastructure might be slowing. Microsoft tops quarterly cloud growth estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings beat: Microsoft reported $4.74 in adjusted EPS versus a $4.24 consensus estimate and $90.01 billion in revenue versus expectations of $87.62 billion. Revenue rose 17.7% year over year, while profit increased about 31%. Microsoft fourth-quarter earnings
• Positive Sentiment: AI monetization is accelerating: Microsoft 365 Copilot surpassed 30 million paid seats, while management described the next growth phase as a “per seat plus consumption” model. Investors viewed Azure and Copilot adoption as evidence that AI investments are translating into commercial demand.
• Positive Sentiment: Spending concerns moderated: Microsoft held its capital-expenditure outlook broadly steady and said it expects continued cash generation in fiscal 2027. Management also said GPU spending could be adjusted if demand weakens, helping counter fears of unchecked AI-related cash burn. Microsoft keeps capex forecast unchanged
• Positive Sentiment: Backlog and analyst support improved: Commercial remaining performance obligations reached a record $678 billion, up 84% year over year. RBC, Goldman Sachs, BMO, TD Cowen and DA Davidson were among firms maintaining positive ratings or raising targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox strategy: New gaming chief Asha Sharma aims to exceed peers’ margins by 2030 through Minecraft investment and partnerships, including in China. The plan could support longer-term profitability but remains execution-dependent. Microsoft Xbox margin plan
• Negative Sentiment: Risks remain: Wiz reported a cloud vulnerability that could have exposed Microsoft customers, while U.K. regulators are investigating Microsoft 365 subscription marketing. Several securities-fraud law firms also publicized shareholder lawsuits. These developments are potential overhangs, although they did not offset the earnings-driven optimism.

Microsoft Trading Up 15.5%

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $451.10 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.35 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.13. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $555.45. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $397.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $405.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 33.07%. The business's revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.28 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $646.00 to $647.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $558.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total transaction of $1,812,780.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,122,009.12. This trade represents a 8.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Microsoft

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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