Morningstar Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 30.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 112,681 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 50,462 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 3.2% of Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $54,494,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% in the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
More Microsoft News
Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s Build 2026 announcements and related coverage continued to reinforce the company’s AI growth story, including new in-house models, agent tools, Windows upgrades, and enterprise AI infrastructure that could deepen its competitive position. Analysts Say Buy Microsoft Stock (MSFT) after Build 2026 Reinforces AI Growth Story
- Positive Sentiment: Multiple articles highlighted Microsoft’s AI revenue run rate crossing $37 billion, suggesting strong monetization from Azure, Copilot, and enterprise AI offerings. Microsoft’s AI Revenue Run Rate Just Crossed $37 Billion. Is It the Best AI Stock to Buy Now?
- Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment remains supportive, with TD Cowen reiterating a buy rating and a $540 target, while other analysts and investors continue to frame Microsoft as a durable long-term AI and cloud leader. The Market Is Undervaluing Microsoft, Says Analyst
- Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s bullish comments comparing Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon to long-term compounding opportunities also added to the constructive investment narrative around MSFT. Billionaire Investor Bill Ackman: Buying Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon Today Could Be Like Adding Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway 25 Years Ago
- Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft announced Reid Hoffman will leave its board after nearly a decade; the move appears planned, though it removes a board member closely associated with the LinkedIn/OpenAI relationship. LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman to step down from Microsoft’s board
- Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is also attracting attention for broader AI ecosystem developments, including fusion power support from Helion and network-security integration for AI agents, which are positive long-term but not immediate stock catalysts. Helion, the Sam Altman-backed fusion startup, raises $465M to build a power plant for Microsoft
- Negative Sentiment: Several pieces flagged technical weakness in Microsoft’s chart and said the stock’s recent rejection at resistance could weigh on the broader software trade. Microsoft Stock Charts Look Vulnerable. Software Stocks Could Follow.
- Negative Sentiment: Commentary around Satya Nadella rebuking an internal “make people addicted” AI memo and renewed concern over Microsoft’s relationship with OpenAI may be creating some short-term reputational and partnership noise. Reid Hoffman to Leave Microsoft’s Board of Directors
Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $392.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Forty-one research 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 stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $561.20.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Microsoft
Microsoft Stock Performance
Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $416.67 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $407.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $431.54. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $356.28 and a 12-month high of $555.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.10 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 21.67%.
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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