<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Hixon Zuercher LLC boosted its position in shares of  Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Free Report) by 13.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,409 shares of the software giant's stock after acquiring an additional 2,114 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for  3.0% of Hixon Zuercher LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Hixon Zuercher LLC's holdings in Microsoft were worth $9,157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.</p><ul><li>3 Stocks to Buy for the Evolution of AI Infrastructure</li></ul><p>Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new stake in  Microsoft during the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000.  Westend Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of  Microsoft by 386.7% during the 2nd 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 stake in shares of  Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $44,000.  ROSS JOHNSON &amp; Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of  Microsoft by 155.7% in the 1st quarter. ROSS JOHNSON &amp; Associates LLC now owns 156 shares of the software giant's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter.  Finally, PayPay Securities Corp raised its holdings in  Microsoft by 29.9% in the 2nd quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 126 shares of the software giant's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. </p><h2>Insider Activity</h2><p>In other news, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total value of $19,967,640.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 461,597 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $239,402,668.08. The trade was a 7.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 149,205 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $504.78, for a total value of $75,315,699.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 790,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $399,206,272.56. The trade was a 15.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own  0.03% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Microsoft Trading Up 1.8%</h2><ul><li>Microsoft Stock Faces An AI-Driven Physics Problem</li></ul><p>Shares of MSFT opened at $485.50 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.61 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $344.79 and a 1 year high of $555.45. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $510.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $499.61. </p><p>Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $77.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.49 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.71% and a return on equity of 33.47%. Microsoft's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share.  Microsoft has set its Q2 2026 guidance at  EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that  Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. </p><h2>Microsoft Increases Dividend</h2><ul><li>Is It Time to Invest in Your Kid's Favorite Gaming Platform?</li></ul><p>The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a boost from Microsoft's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft's payout ratio is currently 25.89%. </p><h2>Wall Street Analyst Weigh In</h2><p>Several analysts have issued reports on MSFT shares. Evercore ISI  set a $640.00 price target on Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Microsoft from $637.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings  reissued a &#34;buy (b)&#34; rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. DZ Bank  reaffirmed a &#34;buy&#34; rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a &#34;buy&#34; rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have given a Buy rating and four have assigned  a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus price target of $634.33.</p><p><b>View Our Latest Stock Report on Microsoft</b></p><h2>Microsoft Profile</h2> (Free Report)<p>Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.</p><h2>Featured Stories</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Microsoft</li><li>Dividend Capture Strategy: What You Need to Know</li><li>Keysight Technologies' Surge: The Market Wakes Up to This AI Play</li><li>Pets Are Big Business: 4 Big-Ticket Pet Stocks to Add to Your Portfolio</li><li>Is American Express the Credit Stock For a K-Shaped Economy?</li><li>Trading Stocks: RSI and Why it's Useful</li><li>Powering Up: How a Credit Upgrade Fuels Vistra’s AI Ambitions</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5BU0RBUSZTeW1ib2w9TVNGVA?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5BU0RBUSZTeW1ib2w9TVNGVA"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Microsoft Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Microsoft, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Microsoft wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Microsoft currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

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<p>Hixon Zuercher LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 13% in Q2, owning 18,409 shares worth $9.16 million. Microsoft is the 4th largest holding in their portfolio. Insider sales include Bradford L. Smith and CEO Satya Nadella, reducing their ownership by 7.70% and 15.87% respectively. Microsoft reported strong earnings, with a 18.4% revenue increase YoY, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.91 per share.</p>

- Hixon Zuercher LLC increased its stake in Microsoft Corporation by 13.0% in Q2, owning 18,409 shares valued at $9,157,000, making it the fund's 4th largest holding.  
- Other institutional investors also adjusted their positions, with notable increases from Westend Capital Management and ROSS JOHNSON & Associates.  
- Microsoft reported strong earnings, exceeding estimates, and announced a dividend increase, with analysts maintaining a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $634.33.

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Hixon Zuercher LLC Has $9.16 Million Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT