Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. Takes Position in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 56,211 shares of the software giant’s stock, valued at approximately $27,185,000. Microsoft comprises approximately 3.4% of Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $397.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Daiwa Securities Group lowered their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Raymond James Financial cut Microsoft from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $525.00 price objective (up from $450.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $562.69.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $415.00 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $396.79 and its 200 day moving average is $445.39. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $356.28 and a 1 year high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The company had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.44 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.67%.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest quarterly results showed stronger-than-expected revenue and EPS, with cloud revenue still growing rapidly, reinforcing the bull case that enterprise AI and Azure demand remain a key growth driver. Great News for Microsoft Stock Investors
• Positive Sentiment: The company is expanding data center investments in Europe to meet rising cloud and AI demand, which signals continued capital deployment behind long-term growth. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) to Invest in European Data Center Regions
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is also being highlighted as a key enterprise AI and cloud leader, with commentary pointing to its deep integration into corporate spending and its AI-control-plane strategy for securing and governing AI agents. Why Microsoft (MSFT) Is Turning Agent 365 Into an AI Control Plane
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays reiterated a Buy rating, and another note raised the price target, suggesting Wall Street still sees upside despite the recent stock consolidation. Microsoft’s (MSFT) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at Barclays
• Neutral Sentiment: Satya Nadella is expected to testify in Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI, a headline that underscores Microsoft’s deep involvement in OpenAI’s founding, but does not by itself change Microsoft’s core operating outlook. Microsoft boss to testify on his role in OpenAI’s founding
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and media commentary comparing Alphabet and Microsoft, as well as broader AI-sector pieces, are mostly sentiment pieces rather than company-specific catalysts. Better Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock: Alphabet or Microsoft
• Negative Sentiment: Bloomberg-reported delays at Microsoft’s African data center site, tied to payment disagreements with the Kenyan government, could slow a planned infrastructure expansion. Microsoft’s African data center falters on payment demands, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: Some market commentary is resurfacing the bear case that generative AI could pressure Microsoft’s Office franchise over time, which may weigh on valuation multiples if investors focus on long-term software disruption risk. The AI Threat Google Couldn’t Mount: Why This Expert Says Microsoft’s $70 Billion Cash Cow Is Vulnerable Now
• Negative Sentiment: Articles noting a broader shift from software toward chip/infrastructure names suggest some investors are favoring AI hardware plays over software stocks like Microsoft right now. Chip Stocks Are Soaring While Software Slows. Is a Reversal Looming?

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).