Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.
Takeshi Numoto also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Wednesday, June 10th, Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of Microsoft stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total value of $1,812,780.00.
- On Monday, June 8th, Takeshi Numoto sold 2,500 shares of Microsoft stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $412.45, for a total value of $1,031,125.00.
Microsoft Trading Up 0.0%
Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $499.99 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $404.86 and a 200 day moving average of $406.96. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $3.71 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.84, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.11. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $553.72.
Microsoft Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.
Microsoft News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Citi raised its Microsoft price target to $600. The upgrade follows Microsoft’s quarterly Azure performance, with analysts highlighting the 43% cloud-revenue increase and stronger-than-expected earnings as evidence that AI demand is translating into accelerating cloud growth. Citi Raises Microsoft Stock Target to $600
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s custom AI chips may improve cloud economics. CEO Satya Nadella said the company’s internally developed chips can deliver efficiency gains of up to 40%. Better cost and energy efficiency could help Microsoft support AI workloads while protecting Azure margins. Microsoft Custom AI Chips Improve Efficiency
- Positive Sentiment: Azure is expanding in India. Microsoft opened a major Hyderabad data-center region and is committing approximately $20.5 billion to its Indian cloud and AI operations. Early customers include Adani Group and HDFC Bank, supporting the case for long-term international Azure growth. Microsoft Opens Largest India Data Center Hub
- Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and institutional support remain strong. Microsoft recently exceeded quarterly revenue and EPS expectations, while Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square holds a reported $2.4 billion MSFT position. Scotiabank also raised its fiscal 2027 EPS estimate and maintained an Outperform rating. Bill Ackman Microsoft Stake
- Neutral Sentiment: AI demand is powerful but concentrated. Reports suggest OpenAI may account for a substantial portion of Microsoft’s AI sales, creating both a major growth engine and customer-concentration risk. Microsoft’s large AI backlog also does not guarantee equivalent future profitability.
- Negative Sentiment: Spending, margins and valuation remain concerns. Rising data-center capital expenditures and lower cloud gross margins could pressure cash flow if AI infrastructure costs grow faster than revenue. After the sharp post-earnings rally, the stock is also more vulnerable to profit-taking or disappointing guidance.
- Negative Sentiment: Insider sales and securities litigation add headline risk. CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares for roughly $4.9 million, and multiple law firms are publicizing a securities class action with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. These developments do not establish wrongdoing but may weigh on near-term sentiment.
Institutional Trading of Microsoft
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Element Pointe Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Element Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 4,774 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,781,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Valley Forge Investment Consultants Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Valley Forge Investment Consultants Inc. ADV now owns 1,260 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $470,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Fidelity National Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth $19,061,000. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 52,787 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $19,690,000 after acquiring an additional 5,188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aljian Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 1.2% in the second quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 36,747 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $13,707,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $586.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $545.00 to $512.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Argus cut their target price on Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $515.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $558.87.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Microsoft
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).
Featured Articles
- Five stocks we like better than Microsoft
- Datadog’s Drop Says More About Expectations Than Earnings
- D-Wave’s Quantum Breakthrough Couldn’t Save QBTS From a Sell-Off
- Cloudflare’s Beat-and-Raise Quarter Puts Its AI Edge Story in Focus
- Solventum Nears Inflection Point As It Begins to Unlock Value
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
