Microsoft (MSFT) Competitors $509.23 -5.22 (-1.01%) Closing price 04:00 PM EasternExtended Trading$509.61 +0.38 (+0.07%) As of 05:16 PM Eastern Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more. Add Compare Share Share Competitors Stock AnalysisAnalyst ForecastsChartCompetitorsDividendEarningsFinancialsHeadlinesInsider TradesOptions ChainOwnershipSEC FilingsShort InterestSustainabilityTrendsBuy This Stock MSFT vs. AAPL, AMD, AMZN, GOOG, GOOGL, META, NVDA, TSLA, CRM, and ORCLShould you be buying Microsoft stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of Microsoft include Apple (AAPL), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Amazon.com (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOG), Alphabet (GOOGL), Meta Platforms (META), NVIDIA (NVDA), Tesla (TSLA), Salesforce (CRM), and Oracle (ORCL). Microsoft vs. Its Competitors Apple Advanced Micro Devices Amazon.com Alphabet Alphabet Meta Platforms NVIDIA Tesla Salesforce Oracle Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their media sentiment, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk and earnings. Which has more risk & volatility, AAPL or MSFT? Apple has a beta of 1.11, meaning that its stock price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Microsoft has a beta of 1.04, meaning that its stock price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Does the media favor AAPL or MSFT? In the previous week, Apple had 40 more articles in the media than Microsoft. MarketBeat recorded 255 mentions for Apple and 215 mentions for Microsoft. Microsoft's average media sentiment score of 1.14 beat Apple's score of 1.01 indicating that Microsoft is being referred to more favorably in the news media. Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment Apple 168 Very Positive mention(s) 29 Positive mention(s) 42 Neutral mention(s) 9 Negative mention(s) 4 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Microsoft 157 Very Positive mention(s) 19 Positive mention(s) 26 Neutral mention(s) 12 Negative mention(s) 1 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Do insiders and institutionals have more ownership in AAPL or MSFT? 67.7% of Apple shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.1% of Microsoft shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Apple shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Microsoft shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth. Which has preferable earnings & valuation, AAPL or MSFT? Microsoft has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Apple. Microsoft is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Apple, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings RatioApple$391.04B9.66$93.74B$6.5938.61Microsoft$281.72B13.44$101.83B$13.6437.33 Is AAPL or MSFT a better dividend stock? Apple pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Microsoft pays an annual dividend of $3.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Apple pays out 15.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Microsoft pays out 24.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Apple has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years and Microsoft has increased its dividend for 23 consecutive years. Microsoft is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth. Is AAPL or MSFT more profitable? Microsoft has a net margin of 36.15% compared to Apple's net margin of 24.30%. Apple's return on equity of 170.91% beat Microsoft's return on equity.Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Apple24.30% 170.91% 31.94% Microsoft 36.15%32.44%18.20% Do analysts recommend AAPL or MSFT? Apple currently has a consensus target price of $244.03, suggesting a potential downside of 4.09%. Microsoft has a consensus target price of $612.54, suggesting a potential upside of 20.29%. Given Microsoft's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Microsoft is more favorable than Apple.Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Apple 1 Sell rating(s) 14 Hold rating(s) 15 Buy rating(s) 2 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.56Microsoft 0 Sell rating(s) 2 Hold rating(s) 29 Buy rating(s) 1 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.97 SummaryMicrosoft beats Apple on 11 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks. Get Microsoft News Delivered to You Automatically Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for MSFT and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter. Subscribe Now View SMS TermsBy entering your phone number and clicking the sign-up button, you agree to receive periodic text messages from MarketBeat at the phone number you submitted, including texts that may be sent using an automatic telephone dialing system. Message and data rates may apply. Message frequency will vary. Messages will consist of stock alerts, news stories, and partner advertisements/offers. Consent is not a condition of the purchase of any goods or services. Text HELP for help/customer support. Unsubscribe at any time by replying "STOP" to any text message that you receive from MarketBeat or by visiting our mailing preferences page. Read our full terms of service and privacy policy. New MarketBeat Followers Over TimeWhat are MarkeBeat Followers?This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding MSFT and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period. Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over TimeWhat is Media Sentiment?This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.Skip Chart MSFT vs. The Competition Export to ExcelMetricMicrosoftCOMP IndustryComputer SectorNASDAQ ExchangeMarket Cap$3.79T$180.22B$32.21B$10.43BDividend Yield0.64%1.22%3.15%4.58%P/E Ratio37.3340.10452.7526.64Price / Sales13.447.181,862.18126.90Price / Cash28.3128.4635.7331.15Price / Book11.0210.067.336.47Net Income$101.83B$4.39B$810.65M$271.57M7 Day Performance0.04%2.20%3.58%2.86%1 Month Performance0.39%2.55%7.45%7.26%1 Year Performance17.47%8.51%24,231.35%26.02% Microsoft Competitors List Export to ExcelCompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)MSFTMicrosoft4.9645 of 5 stars$509.23-1.0%$612.54+20.3%+18.2%$3.79T$281.72B37.33228,000Trending NewsAnalyst DowngradeAAPLApple4.7316 of 5 stars$256.08+4.3%$244.03-4.7%+12.2%$3.80T$391.04B38.86164,000Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastAMDAdvanced Micro Devices4.8396 of 5 stars$159.79+1.5%$180.88+13.2%+2.5%$259.31B$25.79B91.8328,000Trending NewsAMZNAmazon.com4.8892 of 5 stars$227.63-1.7%$263.30+15.7%+18.8%$2.43T$670.04B34.701,556,000Trending NewsOptions VolumeGOOGAlphabet4.7161 of 5 stars$252.88-0.9%$230.35-8.9%+53.6%$3.06T$350.02B26.93190,200Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastGOOGLAlphabet3.9916 of 5 stars$252.53-0.9%$231.31-8.4%+54.4%$3.05T$350.02B26.89183,323Trending NewsAnalyst DowngradeMETAMeta Platforms4.4261 of 5 stars$765.16-1.6%$826.05+8.0%+36.3%$1.92T$164.50B27.7074,067Trending NewsAnalyst RevisionNVDANVIDIA4.9335 of 5 stars$183.61+3.9%$208.47+13.5%+58.3%$4.46T$165.22B52.3136,000Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastInsider TradeTSLATesla4.2387 of 5 stars$434.21+1.9%$324.53-25.3%+82.2%$1.44T$92.72B250.99125,665Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastCRMSalesforce4.9801 of 5 stars$249.64+1.0%$332.58+33.2%-6.4%$237.66B$39.50B36.2876,453Positive NewsORCLOracle4.7326 of 5 stars$329.10+6.6%$303.44-7.8%+95.9%$935.21B$59.02B76.18162,000Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastHigh Trading Volume Related Companies and Tools Related Companies Apple Competitors Advanced Micro Devices Competitors Amazon.com Competitors Alphabet Competitors Alphabet Competitors Meta Platforms Competitors NVIDIA Competitors Tesla Competitors Salesforce Competitors Oracle Competitors Top 10 Stock Comparisons Semiconductor Stocks Artificial Intelligence Stocks Growth Stocks Magnificent Seven Stocks Pharmaceutical Stocks Ecommerce Stocks Bitcoin Stocks Meme Stocks Cryptocurrency Stocks Cybersecurity Stocks This page (NASDAQ:MSFT) was last updated on 9/23/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff From Our PartnersTrump’s national nightmare is herePorter Stansberry and Jeff Brown say a new U.S. national emergency is already underway — and it could trigger ...Porter & Company | SponsoredHe Called Nvidia at $1.10. 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