Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Holdings Lifted by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 368,856 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,378 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 4.0% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $191,049,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 342 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $170,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC now owns 2,761 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,373,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Onyx Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.3% during the second quarter. Onyx Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,108 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $3,536,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.6% during the second quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 1,276 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $635,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $414.12 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $466.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $495.42. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $344.79 and a 12-month high of $555.45. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.90, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The company had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.23 EPS. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total value of $1,364,352.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,703,959.04. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total transaction of $6,266,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Microsoft from $640.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $615.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $450.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $591.95.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst commentary and broader tech-led market lift helped push MSFT higher after last week’s sell-off; the coverage framed the pullback as a buying opportunity. Why Microsoft Stock Topped the Market Today
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft disclosed how many paying Copilot customers it has — a concrete monetization datapoint that reassures investors about AI product revenue traction. Microsoft Finally Revealed How Many Paying Copilot Customers It Has. The Answer Was Shocking for More Reasons Than One.
• Positive Sentiment: Reports attribute part of MSFT’s gains to a key new hire meant to shore up AI efforts and execution — a governance/operational positive that calms investor nerves about execution risk. Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Gains Thanks in Part to New Hire
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum at OpenAI (where Microsoft is a major backer) shows ChatGPT growth accelerating vs. Google — supportive for Microsoft’s AI strategy and Azure demand. OpenAI Intensifies Race with Google as ChatGPT Returns to Higher Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox-related reports (next Xbox reportedly a gaming PC) provided a modest product narrative boost but are unlikely to move near-term earnings materially. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Rises Alongside Reports the Next Xbox Will Be a Gaming PC
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis arguing AI spending looks large on paper but is manageable helped calm some fears — frames capex as an investment with long-term payback rather than an immediate cash drain. Microsoft’s AI Spend Looks Scary, Until You Run The Numbers
• Negative Sentiment: Melius Research downgraded MSFT from Buy to Hold and cut its price target, citing concerns about AI capex and growth—this is a direct bearish analyst action pressuring sentiment. Here’s Why Melius Moved to the Sidelines on Microsoft Stock (MSFT)
• Negative Sentiment: Earlier downgrades (e.g., Stifel) and commentary that MSFT’s valuation now trades below legacy peers like IBM highlight investor worries about heavy AI CapEx and near-term margin pressure. Microsoft’s stock is now cheaper than IBM’s. What that says about the AI trade.

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).