Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Reduces Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. lessened its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 5.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 334,260 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 18,400 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 6.1% of Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $166,264,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Westend Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 386.7% in the 2nd quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. PayPay Securities Corp grew its holdings in Microsoft by 29.9% during the second quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 126 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the second quarter worth $69,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $486.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.62 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $344.79 and a 52-week high of $555.45. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $509.39 and a 200 day moving average of $500.83.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.48. Microsoft had a return on equity of 33.47% and a net margin of 35.71%.The business had revenue of $77.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.30 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. Microsoft has set its Q2 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This is an increase from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 25.89%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 149,205 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $504.78, for a total transaction of $75,315,699.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 790,852 shares in the company, valued at $399,206,272.56. This trade represents a 15.87% 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. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total transaction of $19,967,640.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 461,597 shares in the company, valued at $239,402,668.08. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MSFT. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Friday, November 14th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $600.00 price objective on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $639.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Microsoft to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $634.33.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.