Microsoft Corporation $MSFT Stock Acquired by Iowa State Bank

Iowa State Bank raised its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 8.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 43,399 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,222 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 3.6% of Iowa State Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Iowa State Bank’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $22,259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Eleva Capital SAS purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the third quarter valued at about $11,190,000. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 3.3% in the third quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 19,603 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $10,052,000 after buying an additional 632 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 19.3% in the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 40,886 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $20,970,000 after buying an additional 6,602 shares during the period. Box Hill Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 3.2% in the third quarter. Box Hill Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,409 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,261,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Horizons Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 3rd quarter valued at about $228,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MSFT. Phillip Securities cut Microsoft from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, September 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $725.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Microsoft from $600.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $609.54.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s free-cash-flow position may offer some reassurance: an analysis notes that several other major AI hyperscalers are generating negative free cash flow, while Microsoft is generating positive cash flow. Is Microsoft Getting Enough Credit for Better Free Cash Flow Compared to its Peers?
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say Microsoft plans to reduce the number of neocloud partners it uses, wind down rented AI capacity from Oracle, and declined a Texas data-center expansion with Nscale. This could help control costs and give Microsoft tighter oversight as it builds its own infrastructure, but the implications for capacity growth remain uncertain. Microsoft plans to use fewer neoclouds as AI buildout shows signs of strain
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may read the canceled or reduced AI-computing commitments as a sign that Microsoft is reassessing demand, project timing, or returns on its data-center spending. The shift comes as reports highlight construction delays and the rising cost of meeting a growing AI backlog, intensifying scrutiny of whether heavy investment will pay off. Microsoft is winding down Oracle deal to rent AI cloud capacity, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: Broader unease around AI spending and tech-market volatility may also weigh on MSFT, as investors question the scale of data-center investment relative to future cash returns. Microsoft and Oracle’s AI ambitions are suddenly a lot more expensive

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 486,763 shares in the company, valued at approximately $244,092,173.98. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Amy Hood sold 41,674 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.27, for a total value of $20,764,903.98. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 533,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $265,888,830.48. This represents a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 135,504 shares of company stock valued at $68,138,024 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $530.61 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.69, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $516.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $440.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $559.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 41.17% and a return on equity of 31.28%. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.00%.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices, and digital solutions for consumers, businesses, and public-sector organizations. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company is headquartered in Redmond, Washington.

Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Azure cloud computing, LinkedIn, GitHub, Surface devices, and Xbox gaming products and services. Microsoft also provides business software, cybersecurity tools, and artificial intelligence technologies.

Microsoft serves customers around the world through its products, online platforms, and network of business partners.