Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s Largest Position

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 980,292 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 9,990 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 7.6% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $474,089,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 27.0% in the 1st quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 1,016 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. grew its position in Microsoft by 0.3% during the second quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 12,658 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $5,658,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 410.4% during the third quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,144,000 after acquiring an additional 2,138 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. increased its stake in Microsoft by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 2,374 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 23,097 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,735,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at $33,339,651.75. The trade was a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Melius Research set a $430.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Daiwa Securities Group cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $530.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $588.97.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $373.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.39. Microsoft Corporation has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $555.45. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $402.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $463.92.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released 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. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The firm had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $80.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 22.76%.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Launched three proprietary AI models (MAI-Transcribe-1, MAI-Voice-1, MAI-Image-2) — signals faster, more self‑sufficient AI offerings that reduce dependence on external partners and can accelerate product monetization. Microsoft releases trio of AI models for transcription, voice generation and image creation
• Positive Sentiment: Bloomberg reports Microsoft has hit Copilot sales goals after a strategy shift — evidence that Copilot commercial traction is improving and could support near‑term revenue/booking growth. Microsoft hits Copilot sales goals after strategy shift – Bloomberg
• Positive Sentiment: Large regional infrastructure commitments — continued investment in Asia (e.g., multi‑billion plans for Singapore and Thailand) to expand cloud/AI capacity and address data‑sovereignty demand, supporting long‑term Azure and cloud revenue potential. What Microsoft (MSFT)’s Asia AI Infrastructure Bet Means For Shareholders
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support and fresh buy coverage (Benchmark, New Street, others) with lofty price targets — reinforces buy‑the‑dip narratives and attracts dip buyers. Microsoft in focus as Benchmark starts with Buy rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Exclusive talks with Chevron/Engine No. 1 on a large Texas power project could secure dedicated energy for AI data centers — strategic but execution‑ and timing‑dependent. Microsoft and Chevron enter exclusivity deal on powering West Texas AI data center complex
• Neutral Sentiment: OpenAI’s huge funding/valuation debate and broader AI-market dynamics remain relevant to MSFT (partner/competitor ecosystem impacts), but effects are indirect and longer‑term. Is OpenAI’s $1 trillion IPO valuation realistic?
• Negative Sentiment: Billionaire Dan Loeb reduced his Microsoft stake, citing cloud growth and Azure supply concerns — signals some institutional reservations that can weigh on sentiment. Billionaire Investor Reduces Microsoft Stake Amid Cloud Growth Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage highlighting Microsoft’s recent weak quarter(s) — “worst since 2008” narratives and concerns about elevated AI capex and mixed guidance keep downside risk for sentiment and near‑term multiples. Microsoft Just Had Its Worst Quarter Since 2008–Is This a Generational “Buy” Signal?
• Negative Sentiment: Technical/positioning pressure (breach below long‑term moving averages, some insider/institutional trimming) — raises possibility of further volatility even if fundamentals remain intact. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on Breaching 200-Week Moving Average

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).