Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock: Wellington Grp LLC Raises Holdings

Wellington Grp LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 24.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,973 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,934 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 1.4% of Wellington Grp LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Wellington Grp LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $5,585,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth approximately $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% in 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 valued at $24,013,297,000 after buying an additional 543,172 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $18,306,443,000. Amundi increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 30.8% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 41,675,076 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $15,426,862,000 after buying an additional 9,814,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 10.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 29,323,744 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $10,852,884,000 after buying an additional 2,784,809 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% 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. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total transaction of $3,984,293.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 555,396 shares in the company, valued at approximately $302,924,086.32. This represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $650.00 target price (up from $610.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. Yorkville Ives initiated coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, October 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $615.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Melius Research raised shares of Microsoft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $665.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $609.54.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $521.91 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $512.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $438.43. The company has a market cap of $3.88 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.05. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $551.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.17. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.28% and a net margin of 41.17%. The firm had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.98 per share. This is a boost 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 yield of 0.8%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.00%.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft delivered a strong fiscal first quarter, with revenue of $92.28 billion and EPS of $4.89, both above expectations. Azure revenue surged 48%, while Microsoft Cloud revenue rose 30%, reinforcing the view that AI demand is translating into meaningful cloud growth. Microsoft Earnings Expose a Growing Divide in the Magnificent 7 AI Trade
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued second-quarter revenue guidance of $96.0 billion to $97.1 billion, above the $95.7 billion consensus estimate. Analysts responded with multiple price-target increases, including targets of $630 to $680, and Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to “strong buy.”
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong cash generation and diversified enterprise business continue to distinguish it from rivals facing sharper cash-flow concerns. Analysts argue that Azure, Copilot, AI agents and Microsoft’s security products provide several ways to monetize AI. The expanded Estée Lauder partnership, which will extend Copilot to more than 14,000 employees, offers another example of enterprise adoption. Estée Lauder and Microsoft Strategic Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s voluntary exit offer for approximately 60,000 employees may improve productivity and redirect resources toward AI, but it also highlights a significant restructuring as the company shifts toward more automated, equipment-intensive operations. Microsoft’s 60,000-Person Buyout Offer
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Microsoft’s capital intensity. The company plans roughly $170 billion of AI-related capital spending, while also arranging a $25 billion bond sale—the first major U.S. debt offering since 2017—to fund its buildout. Rising borrowing costs increase scrutiny of future AI returns. Microsoft Plans to Raise $25 Billion in Debt
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly capital spending was below analyst expectations because third-party AI-chip and data-center capacity was delayed, pushing some capacity into the first half of 2027. While management described this as a supply issue rather than weaker demand, the miss hurt AI infrastructure suppliers and revived concerns about the pace of expansion.
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft’s cloud gross margin is reportedly narrowing as chip, power, data-center and labor costs rise. With the Nasdaq 100 down sharply during October amid fears of an AI spending bubble, investors are demanding proof that Microsoft’s large backlog will convert into profitable cash flow—not merely future revenue.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company’s principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.