Violich Capital Management Inc. Sells 3,706 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Key Points

• Violich Capital Management cut its Microsoft stake by 3,706 shares (2.1%) in the third quarter, retaining 173,373 shares valued at about $88.9 million.
• Microsoft beat quarterly estimates, reporting $4.89 in adjusted earnings per share and $92.28 billion in revenue, up 18.8% year over year; it also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.91 to $0.98 per share.
• Reports of Microsoft scaling back some third-party AI-computing commitments have raised questions about AI demand, investment costs, and capacity growth, though the company’s positive free cash flow was noted as a potential strength.

Violich Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 173,373 shares of the software giant's stock after selling 3,706 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 9.6% of Violich Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Violich Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Microsoft were worth $88,923,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Frankly Finances LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Fiduciary Advisors Inc. increased its position in Microsoft by 37.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s free-cash-flow position may offer some reassurance: an analysis notes that several other major AI hyperscalers are generating negative free cash flow, while Microsoft is generating positive cash flow. Is Microsoft Getting Enough Credit for Better Free Cash Flow Compared to its Peers?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Microsoft plans to reduce the number of neocloud partners it uses, wind down rented AI capacity from Oracle, and declined a Texas data-center expansion with Nscale. This could help control costs and give Microsoft tighter oversight as it builds its own infrastructure, but the implications for capacity growth remain uncertain. Microsoft plans to use fewer neoclouds as AI buildout shows signs of strain
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may read the canceled or reduced AI-computing commitments as a sign that Microsoft is reassessing demand, project timing, or returns on its data-center spending. The shift comes as reports highlight construction delays and the rising cost of meeting a growing AI backlog, intensifying scrutiny of whether heavy investment will pay off. Microsoft is winding down Oracle deal to rent AI cloud capacity, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: Broader unease around AI spending and tech-market volatility may also weigh on MSFT, as investors question the scale of data-center investment relative to future cash returns. Microsoft and Oracle's AI ambitions are suddenly a lot more expensive

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT traded down $5.32 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $530.61. 26,926,992 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 22,422,492. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $559.15. The company has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.05. The firm's fifty day moving average is $516.65 and its 200 day moving average is $440.18.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.28% and a net margin of 41.17%. The business had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.13 earnings per share. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft's payout ratio is 19.00%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. The trade was a 7.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 135,504 shares of company stock valued at $68,138,024 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. BMO Capital Markets set a $610.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $640.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group set a $700.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $609.54.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, and digital solutions for consumers, businesses, and public-sector organizations. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington.

Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.

Microsoft serves customers around the world through its products, online platforms, and network of business partners.

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