Sage Mountain Advisors LLC Grows Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Sage Mountain Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 70,864 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,107 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 2.1% of Sage Mountain Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $36,704,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the third quarter valued at $38,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. University of Illinois Foundation bought a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 155.7% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 156 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $540.00 price target on Microsoft and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wolfe Research reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Phillip Securities raised Microsoft from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $591.95.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major private-market validation for the AI ecosystem could benefit Microsoft as a cloud and AI infrastructure provider — Anthropic’s new $380B valuation (which includes investments tied to Microsoft) signals strong enterprise demand for AI models and likely more backend cloud consumption. Anthropic Valuation Hits $380 Billion as Enterprise AI Demand Explodes
• Positive Sentiment: Citi reaffirmed a Buy on MSFT with a $635 price target — a bullish institutional view that supports the long?term AI/cloud thesis despite recent sentiment-driven weakness. Microsoft: Buy Rating Reaffirmed on Undervalued AI and Cloud Growth Drivers Despite Sentiment-Driven Sell-Off
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is leading industry efforts on “digital trust” with other large tech firms (Trusted Tech Alliance), a reputational win that may ease enterprise sales cycles for security?sensitive customers. Microsoft, Ericsson lead global tech alliance for digital trust
• Positive Sentiment: R&D/infra innovation: reports that Microsoft is exploring superconducting power lines for AI data centers point to potential long?term efficiency gains and differentiation for its hyperscale buildout. Microsoft Explores Superconducting Power to Boost AI Data Centers
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft AI chief’s bold timeline for rapid white?collar automation (12–18 months) fuels debate — it underscores market opportunity but also raises labor/regulatory concerns that could shape adoption rates. Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months — for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Market technicians and contrarian pieces argue MSFT looks oversold/potentially bottoming after the post?earnings drop — these narratives can attract buyers, but timing is uncertain. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) Price Forecast: Bottoming at Channel Support?
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk increased today: the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has issued investigative demands and questioned Microsoft’s rivals about its AI/cloud licensing and business practices — this escalation is a clear near?term negative catalyst. US FTC ramps up scrutiny of Microsoft over AI, cloud practices, questions rivals, Bloomberg reports
• Negative Sentiment: Investor rotation and positioning: several funds disclosed cuts to MSFT stakes this week, and commentary highlights investor concern over heavy CapEx for AI infrastructure and concentration risk tied to OpenAI—factors that have pressured the stock. PRIMECAP Management Co cuts Microsoft stake by 1.1M
• Negative Sentiment: Critics argue Microsoft has underperformed some AI peers and that capex intensity may strain free cash flow, reinforcing sentiment?driven selling pressure. Microsoft Is Spending, Investors Are Losing

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total transaction of $6,266,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total value of $1,364,352.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,703,959.04. The trade was a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Down 0.1%

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $401.32 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $344.79 and a 52 week high of $555.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market capitalization of $2.98 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.08. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $460.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $492.67.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The company had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.23 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

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).