Wellington Altus USA Inc. Buys 2,213 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Wellington Altus USA Inc. raised its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 63.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,716 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,213 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 1.4% of Wellington Altus USA Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Wellington Altus USA Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $2,116,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,338,370,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at $18,306,443,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,928,664,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $5,653,812,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Microsoft during the second quarter worth $4,000,706,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $570.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. Argus reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, September 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $609.54.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Cloud and AI results supported the rally. Microsoft’s fiscal first-quarter revenue rose 19% year over year to $92.28 billion, beating estimates, while Azure growth accelerated and AI adoption continued to expand. Reports also highlighted a $677 billion commercial backlog as evidence of future demand. Article: MSFT Q1 Earnings Call Highlights Azure Growth and AI Spending
• Positive Sentiment: Broader market strength lifted mega-cap technology shares. Microsoft joined a post-election rebound as investors rotated back into AI leaders; the company also reached a record high during the session. Article: Microsoft Stock Hits Record High as Midterm Results Boost AI Infrastructure Bets
• Positive Sentiment: New analytics tools target AI-assisted shopping. Microsoft added features to Clarity that help merchants track how AI agents interact with websites and apps, extending the company’s offerings for businesses adopting agentic AI. Article: Microsoft Clarity Helps Merchants Welcome AI Shopping Agents
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed a $25 billion senior-notes offering. The debt issuance provides financing flexibility, but also adds borrowing and interest obligations. Article: Microsoft Announces $25 Billion Senior Notes Offering
• Negative Sentiment: AI investment remains a key risk. Analysts and commentary flagged substantial infrastructure spending, possible pressure on free cash flow and margins, and political calls for tighter data-center rules that could constrain future expansion. Article: Microsoft: Don’t Get Too Excited About Its Positive FCF

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 555,396 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $302,924,086.32. The trade was 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 a total of 135,504 shares of company stock valued at $68,138,024 in the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Stock Up 6.7%

MSFT opened at $555.80 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $515.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $439.42. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $559.15. 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 stock has a market cap of $4.13 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.05.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $90.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 19.00%.

Microsoft 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.