Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Buys 3,910 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 46.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 12,245 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,910 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 2.0% of Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $6,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Westend Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 386.7% during the second quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $459.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $483.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $502.58. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $344.79 and a 1 year high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.07.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the company posted $3.30 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim set a $675.00 price target on Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $500.00 target price (down from $560.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Microsoft to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $630.37.

Microsoft News Summary

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total transaction of $19,967,640.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 461,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $239,402,668.08. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total value of $6,266,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. The trade was a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 54,100 shares of company stock worth $27,598,872 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Company 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).