Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock: Veracity Capital LLC Increases Position

Veracity Capital LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 25.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 13,373 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,715 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up about 1.9% of Veracity Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Veracity Capital LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $6,859,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Frankly Finances LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Fiduciary Advisors Inc. raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on Microsoft from $608.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on Microsoft from $600.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $650.00 price target (up from $610.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $609.54.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total transaction of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total value of $3,984,293.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 555,396 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $302,924,086.32. The trade was a 1.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 135,504 shares of company stock worth $68,138,024. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Northern Trust introduced an AI-powered client-onboarding agent running on Microsoft Azure, with Excel and SharePoint integration. The reported reductions in data-preparation time and strong data-quality results illustrate potential enterprise demand for Microsoft’s cloud and AI tools. Microsoft stock and Northern Trust AI agent
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly becoming more selective about outside AI data-center and neocloud arrangements, including not renewing a cloud contract involving Oracle. Tighter spending could support cash flow, but changes to its infrastructure plans may also raise questions about capacity and execution. Microsoft AI data-center deals
• Negative Sentiment: AI investment remains a key risk: one report said Microsoft’s free cash flow over the last four quarters was about 23% below the prior-year period, amid rising infrastructure spending. A large reported backlog signals demand, but investors will look for that spending to translate into returns. Microsoft backlog, AI capex and neocloud ties
• Negative Sentiment: B&D White Capital, a fund with roughly $1.03 billion in assets, reported selling all its Microsoft shares in the third quarter. The filing is backward-looking and does not establish the fund’s reason for selling, but it may add to near-term sentiment concerns. B&D White Capital share sale

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $545.18 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $559.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $517.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $440.69. The stock has a market cap of $4.05 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.45, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.05.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $92.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $4.13 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 19.00%.

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.

Microsoft serves customers around the world through its products, online platforms, and network of business partners.