Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Position Boosted by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 0.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 980,298 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 3,211 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 2.0% of Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $362,877,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Taylor Securities Services Inc. purchased a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,616,000. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $6,041,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 272,424 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $131,750,000 after acquiring an additional 49,371 shares in the last quarter. Markel Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 537,630 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $199,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 25.3% during the 1st quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 8,648 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $3,201,000 after acquiring an additional 1,745 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure growth exceeded expectations: Azure revenue increased 43%, ahead of roughly 40% analyst expectations, and annual Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion for the first time. The performance eased concerns that demand for AI infrastructure might be slowing. Microsoft tops quarterly cloud growth estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings beat: Microsoft reported $4.74 in adjusted EPS versus a $4.24 consensus estimate and $90.01 billion in revenue versus expectations of $87.62 billion. Revenue rose 17.7% year over year, while profit increased about 31%. Microsoft fourth-quarter earnings
• Positive Sentiment: AI monetization is accelerating: Microsoft 365 Copilot surpassed 30 million paid seats, while management described the next growth phase as a “per seat plus consumption” model. Investors viewed Azure and Copilot adoption as evidence that AI investments are translating into commercial demand.
• Positive Sentiment: Spending concerns moderated: Microsoft held its capital-expenditure outlook broadly steady and said it expects continued cash generation in fiscal 2027. Management also said GPU spending could be adjusted if demand weakens, helping counter fears of unchecked AI-related cash burn. Microsoft keeps capex forecast unchanged
• Positive Sentiment: Backlog and analyst support improved: Commercial remaining performance obligations reached a record $678 billion, up 84% year over year. RBC, Goldman Sachs, BMO, TD Cowen and DA Davidson were among firms maintaining positive ratings or raising targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox strategy: New gaming chief Asha Sharma aims to exceed peers’ margins by 2030 through Minecraft investment and partnerships, including in China. The plan could support longer-term profitability but remains execution-dependent. Microsoft Xbox margin plan
• Negative Sentiment: Risks remain: Wiz reported a cloud vulnerability that could have exposed Microsoft customers, while U.K. regulators are investigating Microsoft 365 subscription marketing. Several securities-fraud law firms also publicized shareholder lawsuits. These developments are potential overhangs, although they did not offset the earnings-driven optimism.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,928,792.23. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total transaction of $1,812,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. The trade was a 8.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Microsoft Stock Up 15.5%

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $451.10 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $397.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $405.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.35 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.12, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.13. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 33.07%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $595.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $558.64.

About Microsoft

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).