Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: 44 brokerages rate Microsoft a "Moderate Buy" (38 buys, 5 holds, 1 strong buy) with an average 12‑month price target of about $556.15.
• Earnings and growth momentum: Microsoft beat Q3 estimates (EPS $4.27 vs. $4.06; revenue $82.89B vs. $81.44B) with strong cloud/Azure growth and accelerating AI monetization supporting the revenue runway and margins.
• Dividend and risk outlook: The company declared a $0.91 quarterly dividend (≈0.9% yield), but investors and some analysts are cautious about record AI/cloud capex (≈$190B guidance) and elevated cloud cash burn that could pressure near‑term free cash flow and valuation.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the forty-four brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirty-eight have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $556.1538.

MSFT has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $615.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $575.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. President Capital lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $641.00 to $646.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday.

Microsoft Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $414.41 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $395.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $447.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a market capitalization of $3.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft has a 12-month low of $356.28 and a 12-month high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.46 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft will post 16.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is presently 21.67%.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results and the earnings call highlighted 40%+ Azure/cloud growth and accelerating AI monetization, giving investors confidence in the company’s long-term AI revenue runway. Microsoft Earnings Call: AI Growth Surges, Margins Squeezed
• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Pentagon signed agreements allowing Microsoft’s AI tech on classified networks — a credibility and contract win that can translate into long-term, high‑value government revenue. Pentagon inks deals with Nvidia, Microsoft and AWS to deploy AI on classified networks
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst actions include several price‑target raises and reaffirmations (Benchmark raised to $525, others keep buy ratings), signaling continued bullish conviction among some buy‑side firms. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) Price Target Increased to $525 by Benchmark
• Positive Sentiment: Product catalyst: rollout of Windows 11’s new Xbox Mode supports consumer engagement and adds a near‑term, tangible product story for the stock. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Jumps on Windows 11 Xbox Mode Rollout
• Neutral Sentiment: The revised Microsoft–OpenAI relationship (ending exclusivity) is being parsed by markets: it reduces some exclusivity upside but clarifies commercial terms that could be neutral-to-positive longer term depending on monetization. Microsoft and OpenAI Just Ended Their Exclusive Deal, and Wall Street Is Trying Hard to Shake Off the Negatives for MSFT Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from TV/hosts (e.g., Jim Cramer) describes MSFT as attractively valued but notes limited new messaging on the call — this shapes retail sentiment but isn’t new fundamental data. Jim Cramer on Microsoft: “Maybe You Can Consider It Cheap, But It’s Software”
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain focused on record capex (roughly $190B guidance) and the near‑term hit to free cash flow — that spending narrative caused the post‑earnings pullback and continues to cap the multiple. Beat meets bill: MSFT stock slips on AI expenditure concerns despite strong Q3
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman’s note flagging extreme cloud cash burn and other outlets highlighting the industry’s rising AI capex raises concern that spending could pressure margins and returns if monetization lags. Microsoft, Amazon On Watch ― Goldman Sounds Alarm On 90% Cloud Cash Burn
• Negative Sentiment: Some brokers trimmed price targets or cut upside on valuation as they bake in capex risk (HSBC cut its target), keeping a portion of the market cautious. HSBC Cuts Microsoft Price Target to $571 From $593

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $397.35 per share, for a total transaction of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% in the second quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in Microsoft in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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).

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.