Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price Expected to Rise, HSBC Analyst Says

Key Points

• HSBC raised its price target on Microsoft to $593 (from $588) while maintaining a buy rating, implying about a 39.6% upside from the prior close.
• Microsoft beat quarterly expectations with EPS $4.14 versus $3.86 and revenue of $81.27 billion, showing strong margins (net margin ~39%) and continued top‑line growth.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed — the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target of $566.71, as recent price‑target cuts followed the reworked OpenAI deal, while positives like Accenture’s Copilot rollout and a A$25B Australia investment support demand for Microsoft’s AI/cloud services.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by research analysts at HSBC from $588.00 to $593.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the software giant's stock. HSBC's target price would suggest a potential upside of 39.59% from the stock's previous close.

MSFT has been the subject of several other reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price target on Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wedbush dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $625.00 to $575.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Microsoft from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $600.00 to $500.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $566.71.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.0%

MSFT opened at $424.82 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.15 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. Microsoft has a twelve month low of $356.28 and a twelve month high of $555.45. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $393.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $449.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.34% and a net margin of 39.04%.The company had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. Microsoft's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft will post 16.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the business'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 directly owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John W. Stanton purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased 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 in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IRON Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 23.2% in the third quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the software giant's stock valued at $3,372,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225 shares during the period. PMG Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $828,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 70,175 shares of the software giant's stock worth $36,347,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 949,901 shares of the software giant's stock worth $493,860,000 after buying an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 18,340 shares of the software giant's stock worth $9,499,000 after buying an additional 2,247 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Legendary investor Michael Burry disclosed a new MSFT position, signaling a contrarian buy-the-dip view that can attract value-focused flows. Michael Burry Disagrees With the AI Narrative, Buys Microsoft Stock and 2 Unexpected Names
• Positive Sentiment: Accenture plans to roll out Microsoft 365 Copilot to ~743,000 employees — a large commercial win that supports Copilot monetization and Azure demand. Accenture to roll out Copilot to all 743,000 employees
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft announced a major A$25B investment in Australia for AI and cloud infrastructure — a long‑term revenue and capex commitment that underlines hyperscale expansion. Microsoft (MSFT) Announces A$25B Investment in Australia’s AI and Cloud Infrastructure
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 earnings preview: consensus expects ~ $4.06–4.14 EPS and ~$81B revenue; Azure growth and Copilot monetization are the key near‑term catalysts that could re‑rate the stock either way. Microsoft (MSFT) Stock: Analyst Predictions Ahead of Q3 Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is offering voluntary buyouts (~reported ~7% of workforce option), a cost‑management step that lowers medium‑term expense risk but also signals pressure to reallocate spending toward AI. Tech Job Cuts: Microsoft Offers Voluntary Buyouts
• Neutral Sentiment: Service interruptions (Outlook sign‑in issues) drew headlines but are operational/temporary and unlikely to materially affect fundamentals. Microsoft Outlook outage coverage
• Negative Sentiment: OpenAI partnership reworked: Microsoft’s exclusive license was ended and revenue‑sharing was curtailed/capped — removal of exclusivity lowers MSFT’s AI moat in investor eyes and sparked an immediate share weakness. Microsoft and OpenAI gut exclusive deal
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts cut price targets after the partnership change and amid capex/margin concerns (examples: BMO, Cantor Fitzgerald, Oppenheimer lowered PTs), increasing near‑term downside perception. Coverage of recent price‑target cuts
• Negative Sentiment: Legal and regulatory overhangs: the Musk v. Altman / OpenAI trial and a Slack antitrust suit over Teams bundling add litigation/regulatory risk to MSFT’s OpenAI exposure and product bundling businesses. Coverage of Musk‑Altman trial and Microsoft exposure

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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