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

Key Points

• Analysts give Microsoft a consensus rating of Moderate Buy from 46 firms (40 buys, 4 holds, 2 strong buys) with an average 12‑month target of $591.95.
• Microsoft beat last quarter's estimates — EPS $4.14 vs $3.86 and revenue $81.27B vs $80.28B — with revenue up 16.7% year‑over‑year and strong margins (net margin 39.04%).
• Near‑term catalysts include a May 1 AI tools bundle, Copilot Health and the Microsoft 365 E7 AI suite, but investor concerns over large AI data‑center capex, a new Authenticator vulnerability and a recent leadership retirement pose near‑term risks.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the forty-six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, forty have given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $591.9487.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MSFT shares. New Street Research raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $670.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $632.00 to $659.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Evercore decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $640.00 to $580.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $450.00 target price on Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lane Brothers & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,903,000. Fund Advisors of America Inc FL purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $2,452,000. Demming Financial Services Corp ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $364,000. Farmers National Bank grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Farmers National Bank now owns 52,455 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $25,368,000 after buying an additional 1,777 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vericrest Private Wealth purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $2,319,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company's stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $395.55 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.94 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft has a fifty-two week low of $344.79 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $427.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $476.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.39.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $81.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $80.28 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.Microsoft's revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.23 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Microsoft will post 13.08 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, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft's payout ratio is 22.76%.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft has a near-term product catalyst: a $99/month AI tools bundle (includes Copilot capabilities) with a May 1 launch that could drive commercial adoption and recurring ARR growth. Microsoft Is Racing to Beat Claude Cowork. A Big Catalyst for MSFT Stock Is Coming May 1.
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is expanding into healthcare AI with Copilot Health (can read medical records and provide personalized insights) and partner integrations, opening a large vertical market and cross‑sell opportunities for Azure and Copilot. Microsoft launched a new healthcare chatbot
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft 365 E7 bundles Copilot, Anthropic’s Claude Cowork and security tools — a premium enterprise offering that can lift average revenue per user for large customers. Analysts continue to highlight AI-driven revenue upside. Microsoft’s New E7 AI Suite And Healthcare Push Shape Long-Term Outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Xbox/product cycle news: Microsoft is advancing Project Helix (next‑gen Xbox) but prototypes won’t reach developers until 2027 — positive for long-term console moat but not an immediate revenue driver. Microsoft’s Next Xbox Moves Closer to Reality: What It Means for MSFT Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Gaming/graphics tech progress (DirectX/advanced shader delivery with NVIDIA/Intel) reduces frictions for PC gaming and helps Xbox/Windows gaming competitiveness but is a more gradual, longer-term tailwind. DirectX Gears Up For ML Era On Windows
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern about huge AI data‑center capex and public pushback over electricity/costs is weighing on the stock; large lease and buildouts boost growth but increase near‑term cash burn. Who is really footing the AI energy bill? Inside the debate about data center electricity costs
• Negative Sentiment: Security scare: reports of a new vulnerability in Microsoft Authenticator have spooked investors and triggered selling pressure tied to identity/security risk. New Vulnerability in Microsoft Authenticator Sends Microsoft Stock Sliding
• Negative Sentiment: Leadership change: Rajesh Jha, a long‑time head of experiences and devices (Office/Copilot products), announced retirement — creates short‑term execution/transition uncertainty. Microsoft's Rajesh Jha, head of experiences and devices unit, to retire
• Negative Sentiment: Options and flows show increased demand for downside protection (put-call skew steepening), reflecting trader caution after the pullback. Option traders moderately bearish in Microsoft with shareslittle changed

Microsoft Company Profile

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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