Westmount Partners LLC Buys 2,211 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Westmount Partners LLC grew its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 6.2% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 37,984 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 2,211 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up 3.5% of Westmount Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Westmount Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $14,060,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% during the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total value of $1,812,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,122,009.12. The trade was a 8.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361 over the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MSFT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. New Street Research dropped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Microsoft from $600.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $502.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Forty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $561.20.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft announced a 20-year power agreement with Chevron for Project Kilby, a 2.67-gigawatt natural-gas-powered data center in West Texas. The deal underscores Microsoft’s commitment to expanding AI/cloud capacity and helps secure long-term electricity for its growing data center needs. Article: Chevron signs power supply deal with Microsoft for Texas data center
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles argue Microsoft’s selloff has made the stock attractive, citing history that suggests a rebound and pointing to still-strong AI and cloud fundamentals. These pieces may be encouraging bargain hunters and long-term investors. Article: History Suggests a Rebound Ahead, Says Top Investor About Microsoft Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is also being highlighted for new AI banking connections and deeper enterprise AI integrations, reinforcing the idea that its AI monetization story is still progressing. Article: Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Notches Up With New AI Banking Connections
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary around Satya Nadella’s remarks suggests Microsoft wants broader, cheaper, and more trusted AI rather than a winner-take-all model race. That may help the company strategically, but it is more of a long-term positioning story than an immediate stock catalyst. Article: Why Microsoft Needs to Carve its Own AI Path
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is facing fresh securities class action/lawsuit headlines tied to alleged disclosures about Copilot and Azure. Even if the legal impact is uncertain, this adds an overhang for investors. Article: Class Action Lawsuit Has Been Filed Against Microsoft Corporation
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish notes continue to question whether Microsoft’s best growth days are behind it, and some analysts are keeping a cautious stance despite the lower valuation. That skepticism can limit upside in the near term. Article: Microsoft: The Best Days Are Behind It

Microsoft Stock Up 1.8%

Microsoft stock opened at $373.94 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $356.28 and a 1-year high of $555.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.78 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $412.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $423.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.46 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

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).