Geremia Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 19,610 shares of the software giant’s stock, valued at approximately $9,484,000. Microsoft comprises about 7.8% of Geremia Financial Services LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted 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 worth $350,712,742,000 after acquiring an additional 13,691,572 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Microsoft by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 299,196,519 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $148,823,341,000 after acquiring an additional 3,166,275 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Microsoft by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 179,001,751 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $88,714,256,000 after acquiring an additional 3,532,054 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the second quarter worth about $50,493,678,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 83,787,746 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $35,316,535,000 after purchasing an additional 11,600,470 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $373.46 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.77 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.11. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $400.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $462.93.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 22.76%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. The trade was a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
More Microsoft News
Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft pledged a major strategic buildout in Japan — a $10 billion, multi‑year plan to fund AI data centers, cybersecurity and workforce training with partners including SoftBank and Sakura Internet, underpinning long‑term cloud/A.I. revenue opportunities and local partnerships. Microsoft to invest $10 billion in Japan for AI and cyber defence expansion
- Positive Sentiment: Microsoft rolled out multiple proprietary AI models and signaled it will build frontier models in‑house — a strategic shift to reduce dependence on partners and capture more of the AI stack (product control, margins and IP). This supports the long‑term AI revenue thesis. Microsoft building its own high-powered AI models as it looks to slash dependence on OpenAI
- Positive Sentiment: Management says Copilot sales targets were met after changing the go‑to‑market approach (moving to paid/subscription rather than broad bundling), a sign of product monetization gaining traction. That helps offset concerns about adoption. Microsoft hits Copilot sales goals after strategy shift – Bloomberg
- Positive Sentiment: Benchmark initiated coverage / and some street notes raised targets (coverage and a $675 price target were reported), providing analyst support that could lift sentiment if follow‑through occurs. Microsoft Charts $10 Billion of Outlays in AI-Eager Japan
- Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft announced local partnerships and community programs (e.g., Victoria University datacenter academy) that support talent pipeline and social license for datacenter expansion — constructive but longer‑dated impact. Microsoft Corp (MSFT) Partners with Victoria University on Datacenter Community Pledge
- Neutral Sentiment: Smaller ecosystem developments (Sakura Internet confirming talks, local partners’ stock moves) amplify the Japan story but are execution‑dependent; useful context for investors tracking regional rollout. SAKURA Internet Confirms Exploratory AI Cloud Collaboration Talks With Microsoft Japan
- Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly performance and commentary have disappointed some investors — headlines describe a Q1 “slide” and the worst quarterly drop since 2008 for MSFT, feeding the narrative of short‑term weakness and valuation re‑rating. That continues to pressure the stock. After Microsoft’s Q1 Slide, Are the Bulls Still On Board?
- Negative Sentiment: Several large funds / billionaires have trimmed MSFT positions in recent 13F disclosures (D.E. Shaw, Steve Cohen, Dan Loeb), signaling some institutional profit‑taking amid concerns over cloud supply constraints and guidance — a headwind for near‑term flows. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): Billionaire Steve Cohen Trims Position
- Negative Sentiment: Security/product risks surfaced (reports on “AI recommendation poisoning”) and ongoing execution demands for in‑house frontier models add operational risk and could temper upside if issues emerge. AI Recommendation Poisoning: Why Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Is Fighting So Hard
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Microsoft from $660.00 to $635.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $588.97.
View Our Latest Research Report on Microsoft
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).
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