Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Acquires 341,921 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 10.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,732,578 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 341,921 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 5.0% of Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,805,149,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the second 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 acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft continues to draw bullish analyst commentary, with multiple firms raising or reaffirming price targets after the company’s strong earnings beat and Azure growth, reinforcing the view that core business momentum remains solid.
• Positive Sentiment: New reports suggest Microsoft’s AI ecosystem is still gaining traction, including partner milestones tied to Copilot and AI cloud services, which supports the case for continued enterprise adoption.
• Positive Sentiment: Several hedge funds and asset managers have recently added to Microsoft positions, indicating that some large investors still view MSFT as a long-term AI and cloud leader.
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft partnered with CAISI and AISI to advance AI model testing standards, a policy-and-safety focused update that may help its enterprise credibility but is unlikely to move the stock on its own.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft is considering adjustments to its renewable-energy targets and offering voluntary retirement packages reflect ongoing cost and infrastructure pressures, but these items are more strategic than immediately material to revenue.
• Negative Sentiment: Market attention is centered on TCI’s reduced stake and the broader “AI anxiety” trade, with investors worried Microsoft may be spending heavily on AI infrastructure before the payoff becomes clearer.
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary also points to temporary margin pressure from elevated AI and data-center spending, which could weigh on near-term profitability even as growth remains strong.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

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

Microsoft Stock Down 1.4%

MSFT stock opened at $415.00 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $356.28 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $396.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $445.39.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MSFT shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $575.00 to $505.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $562.69.

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).