Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Acquires 17,683 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Susquehanna Fundamental Investments increased its Microsoft stake by 10.7% in the second quarter, adding 17,683 shares to own 183,132 shares valued at approximately $68.3 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 71.13% of Microsoft.
• Microsoft insiders sold roughly 150,314 shares worth $75.4 million over the past 90 days, including significant sales by CEO Satya Nadella and EVP Amy Hood under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• The outlook remains broadly positive but hinges on AI spending. Analysts expect strong Azure growth and maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average $592.15 price target, while investors remain focused on whether AI infrastructure costs translate into revenue and margin gains.

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 10.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 183,132 shares of the software giant's stock after purchasing an additional 17,683 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 1.3% of Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $68,312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,245,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 17.0% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 474,527 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $177,062,000 after acquiring an additional 68,966 shares in the last quarter. GTS Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 44.6% during the second quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 271,597 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $101,311,000 after acquiring an additional 83,734 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 115.4% in the second quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,338,020 shares of the software giant's stock worth $499,108,000 after acquiring an additional 716,806 shares during the period. Finally, Jasper Ridge Partners L.P. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 13.9% in the second quarter. Jasper Ridge Partners L.P. now owns 86,470 shares of the software giant's stock worth $32,255,000 after acquiring an additional 10,584 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 533,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 150,314 shares of company stock valued at $75,404,992. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure and earnings expectations remain strong. Bank of America reaffirmed its Buy rating and forecast approximately 44.8% Azure growth. Analysts expect quarterly results to be broadly in line with estimates, with Azure strength potentially offsetting heavy investment in AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Forecast: BofA Reaffirms Buy Ahead of Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s custom silicon and security businesses could support future cloud margins. The Maia AI accelerator and other internally developed chips may reduce reliance on Nvidia, improve cost control and retain more economics from Microsoft’s AI services. Investors are also watching whether security growth helps offset data-center expenses. Microsoft: Security And Silicon Set The Stage For Cloud Margin Recovery
• Positive Sentiment: Medical AI results add another potential growth opportunity. Microsoft’s MAI-DxO reportedly diagnosed complex cases more than twice as often as general physicians in a simulation, strengthening the company’s positioning in healthcare AI, although commercialization and regulatory hurdles remain. Microsoft develops AI tool that can diagnose sequentially like a doctor
• Neutral Sentiment: The upcoming report is a major near-term catalyst. Investors will focus on Azure growth, Copilot adoption, AI monetization, capital expenditures, backlog conversion and management’s outlook. The stock is trading near its yearly high, raising expectations for a strong forecast. Microsoft's Earnings Problem: Even Great May Not Be Enough
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending and market conditions could pressure valuation and margins. Investors have recently sold some technology shares when companies raised infrastructure budgets, while a weaker overall market and higher oil prices have added volatility. Microsoft’s large data-center investment must translate into revenue growth to justify the spending. Microsoft Earnings Report To Focus On AI Momentum, Capex
• Negative Sentiment: Operational and product concerns remain. Microsoft withdrew from a U.K. data-center deal because of power-delivery delays, and Xbox cloud-streaming price changes have generated customer friction. Former CEO Bill Gates has also warned about AI safety risks, potentially increasing regulatory scrutiny. Microsoft pulls out of UK Nscale data centre deal over power delay

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $524.51 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average is $508.51 and its 200 day moving average is $446.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $3.90 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.20, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This is a boost from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 20.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MSFT. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $522.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Microsoft from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Forty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $592.15.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ: MSFT is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company's principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.

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