3,997 Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Shares Sold by Syntax Research Inc.

Syntax Research Inc. lowered its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 36.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,845 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 3,997 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 1.9% of Syntax Research Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Syntax Research Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $2,553,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Frankly Finances LLC purchased a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 37.4% in the second quarter. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. now owns 125 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on 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 owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft reported earnings of $4.89 per share versus the $4.71–$4.72 consensus and revenue of $92.28 billion, up 19% year over year and above estimates of approximately $90.6 billion. Net income increased 32%, while the company extended its streak of record quarterly revenue. Microsoft Beats Q1 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Azure growth accelerated to 48%, generating approximately $33.2 billion in quarterly revenue. Stronger-than-expected cloud demand suggests Microsoft’s investments in artificial intelligence and Copilot-related services are beginning to translate into significant sales and profit growth. Microsoft Azure Revenue Surges
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed that commercial arrangements with OpenAI produced roughly $10 billion of revenue during the quarter, highlighting the value of the partnership but also the company’s substantial financial dependence on a single AI ecosystem. Microsoft Recorded $10 Billion in Revenue From OpenAI
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft lowered its 2026 capital-expenditure forecast to $170 billion from $175 billion, citing delays in third-party capacity. The reduction may ease cash-flow pressure, but it also raises concerns that infrastructure constraints could limit Azure growth and delay returns on AI investment. Microsoft Cuts Capex Forecast on AI Capacity Delays
• Negative Sentiment: The company is offering voluntary buyouts to roughly 60,000 employees while spending heavily on data centers. Although the effort could improve long-term efficiency, investors may view it as evidence that Microsoft is managing mounting AI-related costs. Rising interest rates also pose a valuation risk for the high-growth technology sector.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $531.01 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $3.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.57, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $511.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $437.96. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $551.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.71 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $92.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.13 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.66 earnings per share 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 given a $0.98 dividend. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Microsoft from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $510.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Forty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $596.07.

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.