Northwest Financial Advisors Trims Stock Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Northwest Financial Advisors lowered its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 53.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,076 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,259 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises 1.1% of Northwest Financial Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Northwest Financial Advisors’ holdings in Microsoft were worth $521,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 1st quarter valued at $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 500.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 59,543,261 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $30,840,432,000 after buying an additional 49,618,571 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 49,640.3% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $14,905,904,000 after buying an additional 29,906,791 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Microsoft by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $35,316,535,000 after buying an additional 11,600,470 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Trading Up 0.7%

MSFT stock opened at $414.10 on Thursday. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $356.28 and a one year high of $555.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $396.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $446.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued 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 company had revenue of $82.89 billion for 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 firm’s revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.46 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSFT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $525.00 price target (up from $450.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $586.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $515.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $641.00 to $646.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 9th. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $562.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent results and AI/cloud momentum: Microsoft reported another quarter of strong cloud and AI-driven revenue growth (Q3 revenue up ~18%) and continued order‑book strength — underpinning the bull case for durable top-line expansion. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst lift: Some firms have raised targets (Arete bumped its target sharply), signaling that a portion of Wall Street sees upside from MSFT’s AI investments despite the pullback. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Xbox cost/strategy move: Xbox leadership stopped development of the console Copilot project — a move investors interpreted as removing a costly distraction and focusing resources on higher‑return AI/cloud work. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Government AI oversight: Microsoft agreed to give U.S. agencies early access to new models for national‑security testing — reduces regulatory uncertainty but also adds compliance scrutiny. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Workforce buyouts announced: The company launched a major voluntary buyout program — lowers near‑term opex but risks losing institutional knowledge that could matter for complex AI projects. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Clean‑energy target under review: Reports say Microsoft may delay or abandon its hourly 2030 clean‑energy matching goal because rapid AI data‑center growth is increasing power demand — this raises potential operating costs, reputational risk and regulatory scrutiny. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Higher capex and margin pressure: Microsoft’s 2026 capex plan has risen sharply (reports ~23% above expectations, large multiyear AI/data‑center spending) — supports growth but increases near‑term cash outflows and could compress margins. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive/regulatory headwinds: Pentagon awarded a $500M AI contract to a Meta‑backed Scale AI, and other competitors are landing meaningful deals — reminders that Microsoft faces fast‑moving competition for AI infrastructure and government business. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed analyst notes and trims: Some boutiques trimmed price targets despite beats, reflecting concerns that the market is pricing in AI costs rather than returns; this keeps downward pressure from more cautious investors. Read More.

Microsoft Company 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).