Shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) traded up 1.2% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $374.15 and last traded at $373.02. Approximately 43,686,854 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 15% from the average daily volume of 37,899,133 shares. The stock had previously closed at $368.57.
Key Microsoft News
Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Several bullish notes pointed to Microsoft’s long-term AI and cloud strength, including Deutsche Bank reiterating a Buy view and other commentary highlighting Azure, Copilot, and enterprise security as potential future revenue drivers. Microsoft (MSFT) AI Story Gains Momentum with Deutsche Bank Call and CIO Survey
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft also received support from strategic partnership and marketplace expansion news, including Commvault integration for AI/cyber resilience, Morningstar research in Microsoft 365/Copilot workflows, and Level Access joining Microsoft Marketplace. These developments reinforce the ecosystem and monetization story. Microsoft (MSFT) Expands Operations With a New Strategic Partnership
- Positive Sentiment: Some investors and commentators argued the selloff has made Microsoft look attractively valued, with Michael Burry’s long-dated call option bet and multiple “buy the dip” articles suggesting upside if AI spending eventually translates into stronger earnings. Ranking Every “Magnificent Seven” Stock From Most to Least Likely to Double by 2030
- Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s Irish operations drew attention as a profit powerhouse, underscoring the company’s global earnings footprint but not changing the near-term business outlook. Microsoft’s Irish Hub Is Profit Powerhouse
- Neutral Sentiment: A separate report said Microsoft will raise Xbox prices and discontinue the 2TB model starting Aug. 1, which may help margins but could also pressure console demand. Dear Microsoft Stock Fans, Mark Your Calendars for August 1
- Negative Sentiment: Investor sentiment has been hurt by a historic June selloff tied to concerns that Microsoft’s massive AI capex is taking too long to pay off, with reports saying the stock is headed for its worst month since 2000. Microsoft shares head for worst month since 2000 as AI concerns wipe out $570 billion
- Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is also facing fresh legal and regulatory pressure, including multiple securities-fraud class-action solicitation notices, a copyright lawsuit involving nearly 400 newspaper publishers, and EU/Italy scrutiny over Azure and Microsoft 365/Copilot practices. Microsoft, OpenAI Face Copyright Lawsuit From Nearly 400 Newspaper Publishers
- Negative Sentiment: Gaming news also looks mixed-to-negative, as Microsoft is reportedly pausing new third-party Game Pass deals while increasing Xbox hardware prices, adding to concerns about consumer-facing growth areas. Xbox reportedly pausing new third-party Game Pass deals, developers say
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research firms have issued reports on MSFT. Evercore reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $580.00 to $510.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 9th. New Street Research cut their price objective on Microsoft from $675.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $515.00 target price (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, April 27th. Forty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $560.86.
Microsoft Trading Up 1.2%
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $409.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $420.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.20, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.11.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.67%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. The trade was a 8.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361 over the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft
Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Microsoft by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 717,942,580 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $347,211,391,000 after buying an additional 15,955,898 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Microsoft by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 306,150,608 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $148,060,557,000 after buying an additional 6,388,930 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 182,618,400 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $88,056,019,000 after acquiring an additional 1,911,142 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 121,220,561 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $58,624,690,000 after acquiring an additional 980,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,664,631,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Company Profile
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).
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