Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Holdings Boosted by S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC

S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,125 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,361 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 4.1% of S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $17,503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 315,653,206 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $117,744,959,000 after purchasing an additional 8,944,917 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth about $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% during the second 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 purchasing an additional 543,172 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $18,306,443,000. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Microsoft by 12.0% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 46,694,778 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $17,418,076,000 after purchasing an additional 5,019,702 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT opened at $530.61 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $516.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $440.18. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $559.15. The firm has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.05.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.28% and a net margin of 41.17%. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.13 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.98 dividend. 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. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.46%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total value of $3,984,293.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 555,396 shares in the company, valued at $302,924,086.32. This represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 135,504 shares of company stock worth $68,138,024. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s free-cash-flow position may offer some reassurance: an analysis notes that several other major AI hyperscalers are generating negative free cash flow, while Microsoft is generating positive cash flow. Is Microsoft Getting Enough Credit for Better Free Cash Flow Compared to its Peers?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Microsoft plans to reduce the number of neocloud partners it uses, wind down rented AI capacity from Oracle, and declined a Texas data-center expansion with Nscale. This could help control costs and give Microsoft tighter oversight as it builds its own infrastructure, but the implications for capacity growth remain uncertain. Microsoft plans to use fewer neoclouds as AI buildout shows signs of strain
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may read the canceled or reduced AI-computing commitments as a sign that Microsoft is reassessing demand, project timing, or returns on its data-center spending. The shift comes as reports highlight construction delays and the rising cost of meeting a growing AI backlog, intensifying scrutiny of whether heavy investment will pay off. Microsoft is winding down Oracle deal to rent AI cloud capacity, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: Broader unease around AI spending and tech-market volatility may also weigh on MSFT, as investors question the scale of data-center investment relative to future cash returns. Microsoft and Oracle’s AI ambitions are suddenly a lot more expensive

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the topic of several research reports. Griffin Securities cut Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $630.00 price target (up from $600.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Wolfe Research raised Microsoft from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, William Blair began coverage on Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 5th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $609.54.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, and digital solutions for consumers, businesses, and public-sector organizations. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington.

Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.

Microsoft serves customers around the world through its products, online platforms, and network of business partners.