CLSA Upgrades Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) to "Moderate Buy"

Key Points

• CLSA upgraded Microsoft to a “moderate buy,” adding to a generally bullish analyst backdrop; the stock now has 42 Buy ratings and 7 Hold ratings, with an average price target of $557.46.
• Microsoft recently reported strong fiscal Q3 earnings, beating expectations with EPS of $4.27 on revenue of $82.89 billion, and revenue rose 18.3% year over year.
• Investors are also watching near-term catalysts and risks, including the expanded AMD partnership for Azure AI infrastructure and a new securities-fraud lawsuit that could create legal overhang ahead of July 29 earnings.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by CLSA to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on MSFT. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $515.00 target price (down from $630.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, April 27th. Scotiabank raised shares of Microsoft from an "outperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Microsoft from a "market outperform" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Microsoft from a "market perform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Argus reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $557.46.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT opened at $402.29 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 trillion, a PE ratio of 23.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.13. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $400.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $410.17. Microsoft has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.46 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft will post 16.71 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Frankly Finances LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 287.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company's stock.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft announced an expanded strategic partnership with AMD to deploy Helios systems across Azure, reinforcing its AI infrastructure buildout and giving the stock a near-term boost. Microsoft expands AMD partnership with Helios AI infrastructure deployment on Azure
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentators are framing Microsoft as attractively valued ahead of earnings, with some highlighting upside from Azure growth, AI execution, and Copilot adoption if management delivers strong commentary. Microsoft Stock Price Offers ‘Attractive Entry Point,’ Says Deutsche Bank Ahead of Q2 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is approaching fiscal Q4 earnings on July 29, and investors are watching for updates on Azure growth, AI spending, and whether Copilot is gaining traction. Microsoft earnings to spotlight Azure growth, AI spending
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment is also being weighed down by a new securities-fraud lawsuit tied to prior AI/Copilot disclosures, which could add legal and reputational overhang ahead of earnings. MSFT Investors Have Opportunity to Lead Microsoft Corporation Securities Fraud Lawsuit

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).

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