3,071 Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Purchased by Private Management Group Inc.

Private Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 19.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,974 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,071 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 64,375,360 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $24,013,297,000 after acquiring an additional 543,172 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $18,306,443,000. Amundi grew its position in Microsoft by 30.8% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 41,675,076 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $15,426,862,000 after acquiring an additional 9,814,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Microsoft by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 29,323,744 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $10,852,884,000 after purchasing an additional 2,784,809 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at $265,888,830.48. This represents a 7.24% 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 have sold a total of 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992 in the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

More Microsoft News

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Microsoft from $700.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $440.00 price target on Microsoft in a report on Monday, September 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $660.00 to $662.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Forty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $592.15.

Microsoft Price Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $524.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.90 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. The business’s fifty day moving average is $508.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $446.17. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results 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 the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 20.27%.

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.