Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Position Boosted by Torque Asset Management LLC

Torque Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,527 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 3,701 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 8.1% of Torque Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Torque Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $23,469,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 51.3% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth about $50,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Phillip Securities upgraded Microsoft to a “buy” rating and set a $485.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Dbs Bank cut their price objective on Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on Microsoft from $595.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Forty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $561.20.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total value of $1,812,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 47,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,122,009.12. This trade represents a 8.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $393.83 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $356.28 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $412.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $427.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $2.93 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.67%.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft continues to expand its AI offerings, including the global rollout of its Copilot Cowork AI agent and new pay-as-you-go pricing, which could improve monetization if adoption grows. Microsoft’s AI agent Copilot Cowork now available globally; Cowork 1 to come soon
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary around Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s view that AI can help software companies has been supportive for Microsoft’s AI strategy, since Microsoft has already embedded AI across its products. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Just Announced Fantastic News to Microsoft Stock Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: Oracle denied reports that a $3 billion cloud deal with Microsoft collapsed because of security and FedRAMP compliance issues, leaving the situation unresolved but not clearly worsening. Oracle Denies Report That Security Concerns Killed Potential $3 Billion Microsoft Cloud Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s AI and quantum-related product news, including new Surface devices and broader AI/coding tools, supports the long-term growth narrative but is less likely to move the stock immediately. Microsoft debuts Surface Laptop and Surface Pro amid AI-driven memory shortage
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft walked away from a potential $3 billion Oracle cloud capacity deal, according to multiple reports, which suggests ongoing pressure to secure enough AI infrastructure and may highlight execution challenges. Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure talks with Oracle collapse, Business Insider reports
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholders filed a class action lawsuit alleging Microsoft misled investors about Azure growth and the need for heavy AI infrastructure spending, adding legal and sentiment pressure on the shares. Microsoft sued by shareholders over expenses, cloud business, AI
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may close or spin off parts of Xbox, including studio closures, reinforce concerns about restructuring costs and weak gaming margins. Microsoft looks to shut down Compulsion Games — report

Microsoft 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).