Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Has $94.21 Million Stock Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Sumitomo Life Insurance raised its Microsoft stake by 9.1% to 181,895 shares worth $94.21 million, representing about 2.9% of its portfolio and making MSFT its ninth-largest holding.
• Microsoft beat quarterly expectations with $4.14 EPS and $81.27 billion in revenue (up 16.7% YoY), has a $3.01 trillion market cap, and announced a $0.91 quarterly dividend (0.9% yield).
• AI monetization and analyst outlook: Microsoft is pushing AI products (Copilot Cowork and a ~$99 "Frontier" M365 tier) to drive Azure usage, and analysts maintain a consensus "Moderate Buy" with a $591.95 price target amid several upgrades.

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 181,895 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 15,138 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 2.9% of Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $94,213,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IRON Financial LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 23.2% during the 3rd quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $3,372,000 after buying an additional 1,225 shares during the period. Wellington Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at about $9,941,000. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.6% during the second quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 94,120 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $46,816,000 after acquiring an additional 2,373 shares during the last quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.3% during the third quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $36,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,572 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 14.0% during the third quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 18,340 shares of the software giant's stock worth $9,499,000 after purchasing an additional 2,247 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $405.76 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $432.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $478.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45.

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

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MSFT. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Microsoft from $632.00 to $659.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Microsoft from $650.00 to $600.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $591.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft launched Copilot Cowork (integrating Anthropic’s Claude) to accelerate enterprise AI agents and drive more Azure usage — a clear revenue/consumption play for cloud investors. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: The company unveiled a higher‑priced Microsoft 365 E7 / “Frontier” AI subscription (~$99/user) aimed at monetizing Copilot seats and raising ARPU from enterprise customers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst notes and buy-the-dip commentary (including Wedbush and several independent upgrades) reinforce conviction that MSFT’s AI + Azure flywheel still underpins longer‑term upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Opinion pieces urging investors to buy the pullback highlight the view that current weakness may be a longer-term buying opportunity for a dominant cloud/AI platform. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft filed an amicus brief backing Anthropic’s lawsuit to block the DoD’s “supply‑chain risk” designation — this preserves access to Claude for many customers (supporting Azure usage) but leaves regulatory headlines in play. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: OpenAI/OpenAI-related product moves (e.g., planned Sora video generation in ChatGPT) and ongoing ecosystem developments add optionality to Microsoft’s AI exposure given its infrastructure role. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: The board declared a $0.91 quarterly dividend (small yield), a supportive cash-return policy but not a material near-term catalyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest jumped meaningfully in February (over 30% growth), which can amplify downside volatility and signal some market skepticism in the near term.
• Negative Sentiment: An EVP disclosed a multi‑million dollar sale of MSFT shares; insider selling and increased short interest add psychological pressure on the stock. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and legal risk from the Anthropic/Pentagon dispute — and warnings about potential supply‑chain disruptions — keep a real near‑term tail risk that could affect government contracts and sentiment. Read More.

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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