Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Bought by Grove Bank & Trust

Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 6.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 39,661 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,458 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 2.0% of Grove Bank & Trust’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Grove Bank & Trust’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $20,342,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hedeker Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Hedeker Wealth LLC now owns 55,236 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $20,604,000 after buying an additional 3,546 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its stake in Microsoft by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 229,490 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $85,604,000 after buying an additional 8,773 shares in the last quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $3,652,000. Dearborn Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter valued at approximately $75,641,000. Finally, GTS Securities LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 44.6% in the 2nd quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 271,597 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $101,311,000 after purchasing an additional 83,734 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $533.16 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market cap of $3.96 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $517.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $441.10. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $559.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 41.17% and a return on equity of 31.28%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 price objective (up from $610.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price objective on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. William Blair initiated coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Monday, October 5th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $609.54.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft and IBM introduced Imagine Enterprise, a platform combining IBM’s library of more than 6,000 AI agents with Microsoft’s cloud, data and security tools. The partnership could help drive enterprise demand for Microsoft’s AI and cloud services. IBM and Microsoft Announce a New AI Agent Platform Designed for Industry-Specific Transformation
• Positive Sentiment: A five-year partnership with Ohio State University will apply Microsoft’s cloud and AI technology to healthcare, research and education, adding another potential customer and use case. Ohio State and Microsoft announce five-year strategic partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft reportedly urged the administration to drop a proposed ban on Chinese data-center technology, warning that restrictions could complicate data-center deployment. The outcome could affect equipment access and rollout timing. Microsoft presses Trump to scuttle expected ban on Chinese data-center technology
• Negative Sentiment: Anthropic unveiled workplace tools that could compete with Microsoft Office, including spreadsheet-related capabilities. The move raised concerns about competition in Microsoft’s enterprise software business. Anthropic unveils office suite to challenge Microsoft
• Negative Sentiment: A hot inflation report and rising bond yields weighed on the broader market, creating an additional headwind for technology shares. Stock market coverage on inflation and technology shares

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at $265,888,830.48. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 142,809 shares of company stock valued at $72,114,646 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, and digital solutions for consumers, businesses, and public-sector organizations. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.