Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by Veritas Asset Management LLP

Veritas Asset Management LLP decreased its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 27.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,181,829 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 827,769 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 12.1% of Veritas Asset Management LLP’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Veritas Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,130,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 51.3% in 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. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the third quarter valued at $38,000. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $392.74 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $443.56 and its 200-day moving average is $483.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market capitalization of $2.92 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% 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, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $397.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,986,750.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 83,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at BNP and others say OpenAI’s large new funding round should still benefit Microsoft because of its deep Azure and infrastructure ties — a reminder that MSFT remains a key AI partner and infrastructure provider. OpenAI’s massive funding round should benefit Microsoft, Oracle: BNP
• Positive Sentiment: An insider (director Stanton John) bought roughly $2M of MSFT stock, signalling confidence from management-level insiders during the pullback. Director Stanton John Just Bought $2 Million of Microsoft Stock
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat / Altimetry note that Microsoft is “at the center of AI” with high switching costs and under-appreciated fundamentals — an argument that current valuation weakness is sentiment-driven and could reverse. AI Is Separating Software Winners From Losers, 2 Experts Explain
• Positive Sentiment: Dynamics 365 business applications continue to post solid mid-teens to high?teens growth and are cited as a consistent driver of Productivity & Business Processes revenue — a durable growth stream beyond Azure. Can Microsoft Stock Rally on Dynamics 365 Business Applications?
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft announced its next quarterly dividend payable March 13 — a steady income signal but unlikely to move the stock materially amid the current narrative-driven trading. Microsoft to pay dividends on March 13; Here’s how much 100 MSFT shares will earn
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction to OpenAI’s announcement cut both ways: Microsoft wasn’t named among some of the latest funding/partner headlines, prompting investor worry about its standing with OpenAI and driving selling pressure. What’s Behind The Drop In Microsoft Stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Japan’s authorities carried out a raid tied to suspected antitrust issues around Microsoft’s cloud business, raising regulatory risk in a major market. Microsoft Japan raided over suspected violation of anti-monopoly law, source says
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/real?estate headwinds: reports of data center/building delays and related execution noise have been cited as a near-term drag on sentiment. “On Hold Until Further Notice”: Microsoft Stock Slumps With Building Delay
• Negative Sentiment: Broader AI-capex and semiconductor market jitters (Nvidia-centric weakness) are depressing the megacap tech complex; investors are weighing heavy industry capex against margins and balance-sheet strain. That macro pressure is spilling over to Microsoft. Nvidia Fails to Reassure—Heard on the Street

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSFT has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $641.00 price objective (down from $645.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Microsoft from $640.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $586.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, February 12th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $591.95.

About Microsoft

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).