Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Holdings Lifted by Affinity Capital Advisors LLC

Affinity Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 44.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,598 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,809 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 1.0% of Affinity Capital Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,543,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $50,493,678,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft in the 1st quarter worth approximately $18,733,827,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 500.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 59,543,261 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $30,840,432,000 after purchasing an additional 49,618,571 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 49,640.3% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 29,967,038 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $14,905,904,000 after purchasing an additional 29,906,791 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Microsoft by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $350,712,742,000 after purchasing an additional 13,691,572 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. DZ Bank restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Daiwa Securities Group dropped their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on Microsoft from $632.00 to $659.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $588.97.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some Wall Street analysts still see large upside for MSFT, arguing the pullback may be overdone and presenting a buying opportunity for long‑term investors. Wall Street Says Microsoft Stock Has 89% Rebound Potential
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamental revenue drivers remain: LinkedIn ad growth and marketing solutions are cited as near‑term revenue positives that help offset AI spending concerns. Microsoft Benefits From LinkedIn Ad Growth: More Upside Ahead?
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft has implemented targeted hiring freezes in major cloud and North American sales groups while keeping AI and engineering hiring active — a cost‑management move that highlights prioritization of AI infrastructure but leaves uncertainty over near‑term sales execution. Microsoft freezes hiring in major cloud, sales groups, The Information reports
• Neutral Sentiment: Infrastructure expansion continues: third‑party partner Crusoe announced a 900 MW AI campus in Abilene, Texas to support large‑scale workloads for Microsoft — this reinforces demand for hyperscale capacity even as investors debate ROI timing. Crusoe Announces New 900 MW AI Factory Campus in Abilene, Texas to Support Microsoft AI Infrastructure
• Negative Sentiment: Market narrative has flipped: analysts and commentary say Microsoft is “losing the AI narrative,” and technical indicators show the stock at decade‑low oversold levels — fueling momentum selling. Microsoft’s stock hasn’t been this oversold in a decade, with the tech giant ‘really losing the AI narrative’
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy AI capex and execution concerns: multiple reports highlight Microsoft’s very large AI spending (reports cite ~$30B per quarter-level scale), slowing Copilot adoption vs. expectations, and the stock is on track for its worst quarter since 2008 — pressuring valuations and near‑term sentiment. Microsoft Is Down 24% This Year While Spending $30B a Quarter on AI
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive and strategic risks are rising: OpenAI and other AI firms (including reports of Anthropic eyeing an IPO) are evolving relationships and competition that could reduce Microsoft’s exclusive leverage in parts of the AI stack. Anthropic eyes IPO, Microsoft stock set for worst quarter since 2008

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $397.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Trading Down 2.5%

Microsoft stock opened at $356.77 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $555.45. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $409.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $467.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market capitalization of $2.65 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.76%.

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).