Simon Quick Advisors LLC Has $22.62 Million Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,664 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,373 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 1.0% of Simon Quick Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Simon Quick Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $22,616,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 2.0% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 221,041 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $114,488,000 after purchasing an additional 4,242 shares during the last quarter. Brave Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.4% in the third quarter. Brave Asset Management Inc. now owns 39,271 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $20,339,000 after buying an additional 1,293 shares during the period. Pflug Koory LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 16,181 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $8,381,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Bell Bank boosted its position in Microsoft by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bell Bank now owns 38,864 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $20,130,000 after buying an additional 392 shares during the period. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 13,068 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $6,769,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $459.86 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $344.79 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $483.97 and a 200-day moving average of $502.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.48. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.71% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The business had revenue of $77.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 25.89%.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and Street optimism — Wedbush’s Dan Ives and others are positioning Microsoft as set for strong Q4 results tied to AI/cloud momentum, helping lift sentiment ahead of earnings. Dan Ives: Very Strong Q4 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Broker reaffirmation — Morgan Stanley kept an Overweight rating and high $650 target based on survey data showing rising enterprise software spend, supporting longer‑term upside expectations. Morgan Stanley Overweight
• Positive Sentiment: OpenAI monetization boost — OpenAI’s worldwide rollout of the lower‑cost ChatGPT Go subscription expands the addressable market for AI services where Microsoft has strategic exposure, lifting revenue hopes. OpenAI ChatGPT Go Worldwide
• Positive Sentiment: Data‑center expansion/community plan — News of a $500M–$1B Michigan data‑center push and Microsoft’s “community‑first” messaging shows continued capex to support Azure/AI growth, which investors view as reinforcing future revenue streams despite near‑term costs. Michigan Data Center Investment
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical/short‑term rebound thesis — Some analysts note MSFT is oversold and could see a technical bounce ahead of earnings, which supports trading interest but is not a fundamental catalyst. Zacks: Ripe for Turnaround
• Neutral Sentiment: Minor operational housekeeping — The company closed some on‑campus libraries, a small cost/real‑estate move that got attention but is unlikely to materially affect earnings. MSFT Shuts Libraries
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory probe into Activision Blizzard — Italy opened investigations into alleged “misleading and aggressive” in‑game purchase practices for Call of Duty Mobile and Diablo Immortal, creating reputational and potential financial risk for MSFT’s gaming unit. Italy Investigates Activision
• Negative Sentiment: Legal risk from Musk trial — A judge cleared Elon Musk’s suit against OpenAI and Microsoft to proceed to a jury trial in April, introducing headline legal overhang and potential distraction/costs. Musk Trial Moves Forward
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory scrutiny and analyst trim — Switzerland opened a probe into Microsoft’s licensing fees and Barclays lowered its price target, both adding near‑term headwinds to sentiment amid capex worries and noted insider selling. Swiss Probe into Licensing Fees

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $650.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, January 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $639.00 price target on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Mizuho downgraded Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $630.37.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total value of $1,364,352.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,703,959.04. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total value of $6,266,880.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 54,100 shares of company stock worth $27,598,872. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

About Microsoft

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).