Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) CEO Satya Nadella Sells 86,525 Shares of Stock

Posted by Brian Himes on Sep 3rd, 2026

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Microsoft Stock Performance

MSFT stock opened at $496.82 on Thursday. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.69 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.66, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $438.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $414.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 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 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.65 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group set a $525.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. CLSA reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Phillip Securities cut shares of Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $562.49.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on MSFT

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft will begin disclosing quarterly Azure revenue in fiscal 2027 and consolidate its reporting structure from three segments to two. The added transparency should allow investors to compare Azure more directly with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud and could highlight the scale of AI-driven demand. Microsoft to reveal Azure cloud sales in financial reporting shift
Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its Microsoft price target to $600 from $500, citing accelerating Azure growth, improving AI efficiency and more than 30 million paid Microsoft 365 Copilot seats. The bullish view reinforces expectations that Microsoft can convert AI infrastructure spending into higher revenue and earnings. Microsoft’s AI strategy accelerates cloud growth and efficiency: analysts
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is expanding its AI ecosystem through a 20-year power agreement supporting a planned West Texas data center, a HUMAIN partnership targeting up to one million enterprise users in the Middle East and Africa, and new Microsoft 365 Copilot integrations. These agreements support long-term cloud, infrastructure and productivity growth, although near-term profitability depends on execution. Microsoft Signed a 20-Year AI Power Deal With Chevron
Neutral Sentiment: An EU court rejected Opera’s challenge to Microsoft Edge’s exemption from certain Digital Markets Act obligations. The ruling reduces an immediate regulatory burden for Edge, but its direct financial effect is likely limited. EU court rejects Opera challenge against Microsoft’s Edge exemption
Negative Sentiment: CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 MSFT shares worth approximately $43.4 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Although scheduled sales generally do not signal a change in business outlook, the transaction reduced his position by 15.09%; broader insider activity has also consisted entirely of sales over the past six months. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Form 4 filing
Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Microsoft’s roughly $116 billion in annual property and equipment spending. The AI buildout could drive substantial growth, but depreciation, power constraints and uncertain returns may pressure margins if demand fails to keep pace. Big Tech Spent Over $1 Trillion on AI
Negative Sentiment: Additional pressure came from reports of a controversial Windows 11 feature, continuing concerns about a Microsoft 365 outage, and criticism surrounding 3,200 Xbox job cuts. These issues may weigh on user sentiment and highlight risks in Microsoft’s consumer and gaming businesses. Xbox layoffs

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. MLG Wealth Management DBA Pine Grove Financial Group boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. MLG Wealth Management DBA Pine Grove Financial Group now owns 6,275 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,340,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Range Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 55.3% during the second quarter. Range Advisory LLC now owns 23,157 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $8,638,000 after buying an additional 8,245 shares in the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 54,067 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $20,168,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. grew its stake in Microsoft by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 30,974 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $11,554,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth approximately $13,004,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Microsoft

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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).