Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Acquired by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 136.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 274,648 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 158,528 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 0.7% of Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $132,825,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Banta Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $641,000. Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,636 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $7,079,000 after buying an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 24.9% during the fourth quarter. White Lighthouse Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,805 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $4,258,000 after buying an additional 1,757 shares in the last quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV now owns 9,059 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $4,381,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69,203 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $33,468,000 after buying an additional 2,542 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $416.67 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $356.28 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $407.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $432.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market cap of $3.10 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The business had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 21.67%.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s Build 2026 announcements and related coverage continued to reinforce the company’s AI growth story, including new in-house models, agent tools, Windows upgrades, and enterprise AI infrastructure that could deepen its competitive position. Analysts Say Buy Microsoft Stock (MSFT) after Build 2026 Reinforces AI Growth Story
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple articles highlighted Microsoft’s AI revenue run rate crossing $37 billion, suggesting strong monetization from Azure, Copilot, and enterprise AI offerings. Microsoft’s AI Revenue Run Rate Just Crossed $37 Billion. Is It the Best AI Stock to Buy Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment remains supportive, with TD Cowen reiterating a buy rating and a $540 target, while other analysts and investors continue to frame Microsoft as a durable long-term AI and cloud leader. The Market Is Undervaluing Microsoft, Says Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s bullish comments comparing Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon to long-term compounding opportunities also added to the constructive investment narrative around MSFT. Billionaire Investor Bill Ackman: Buying Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon Today Could Be Like Adding Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway 25 Years Ago
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft announced Reid Hoffman will leave its board after nearly a decade; the move appears planned, though it removes a board member closely associated with the LinkedIn/OpenAI relationship. LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman to step down from Microsoft’s board
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is also attracting attention for broader AI ecosystem developments, including fusion power support from Helion and network-security integration for AI agents, which are positive long-term but not immediate stock catalysts. Helion, the Sam Altman-backed fusion startup, raises $465M to build a power plant for Microsoft
• Negative Sentiment: Several pieces flagged technical weakness in Microsoft’s chart and said the stock’s recent rejection at resistance could weigh on the broader software trade. Microsoft Stock Charts Look Vulnerable. Software Stocks Could Follow.
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary around Satya Nadella rebuking an internal “make people addicted” AI memo and renewed concern over Microsoft’s relationship with OpenAI may be creating some short-term reputational and partnership noise. Reid Hoffman to Leave Microsoft’s Board of Directors

Insider Activity

In other Microsoft news, 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. DZ Bank reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, May 4th. Melius Research set a $430.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, February 9th. Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, June 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $550.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $561.20.

Microsoft Profile

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).