Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse Sells Off Shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Key Points

• Senator Sheldon Whitehouse sold between $15,001 and $50,000 in Microsoft shares on September 4th, as reported in a recent filing.
• Microsoft announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.91, to be paid on December 11th, reflecting a shift from the previous $0.83 payout.
• Several analysts have recently raised their price targets for Microsoft shares, with upgrades reflecting strong market confidence, indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island) recently sold shares of Microsoft Corporation NASDAQ: MSFT. In a filing disclosed on October 03rd, the Senator disclosed that they had sold between $15,001 and $50,000 in Microsoft stock on September 4th.

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Amgen NASDAQ: AMGN on 9/4/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Verizon Communications NYSE: VZ on 9/4/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of UnitedHealth Group NYSE: UNH on 9/4/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Honeywell International NASDAQ: HON on 9/4/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Apple NASDAQ: AAPL on 9/4/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of NVIDIA NASDAQ: NVDA on 9/4/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Kenvue NYSE: KVUE on 8/28/2025.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Danaher NYSE: DHR on 8/28/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of UnitedHealth Group NYSE: UNH on 8/28/2025.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of Lam Research NASDAQ: LRCX on 8/28/2025.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $517.35 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $512.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $466.63. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.85 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.93, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.03.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $3.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.35 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $76.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $73.79 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 36.15% and a return on equity of 32.44%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.95 earnings per share. Microsoft has set its Q1 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. This is an increase from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft's dividend payout ratio is currently 24.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Arete upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $700.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $490.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $580.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $585.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $617.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,850 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $527.32, for a total value of $2,557,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,624,012.52. This trade represents a 11.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 149,205 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $504.78, for a total value of $75,315,699.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 790,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at $399,206,272.56. This trade represents a 15.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $32,000. Westend Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 386.7% during the second quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the software giant's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 66.7% in the first quarter. Newton One Investments LLC now owns 75 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Senator Whitehouse

Sheldon Whitehouse (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. Senate from Rhode Island. He assumed office on January 3, 2007. His current term ends on January 3, 2031. Whitehouse (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the U.S. Senate to represent Rhode Island. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.