As the race for high-performance computing intensifies, investors must choose between the niche growth of Applied Digital (APLD +4.92%) and the massive scale of Microsoft (MSFT -2.26%). Which stock is the better buy?
Applied Digital builds the physical foundation for the artificial intelligence era through specialized data centers. Microsoft operates as a global technology leader, integrating software and cloud computing across its massive ecosystem. Both companies are prominent players in the technology landscape, though they offer distinct risk and reward profiles for your portfolio.
The case for Applied DigitalApplied Digital designs and operates digital infrastructure and cloud services for high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence. The company primarily serves crypto mining customers and provides GPU computing for hyperscalers and enterprises. One anchor customer accounted for roughly 59% of total revenue from continuing operations during fiscal year 2026. Customer concentration like this adds a layer of risk to the business.
In FY 2026, revenue reached nearly $611.3 million, marking a significant growth rate of approximately 183.7% compared to the previous year. This expansion was driven by the scaling of its data center and cloud service segments. Despite the revenue surge, the company reported a net loss of nearly $244.0 million for the period.
Applied Digital operates within the infrastructure segment of tech stocks. As of its May 2026 balance sheet, the debt-to-equity ratio is nearly 2.9x, which shows how much debt a company uses relative to shareholder equity. The current ratio, measuring the ability to cover short term obligations, is approximately 4.0x. Free cash flow was negative at close to $2.8 billion, representing cash from operations minus capital expenditures. Note that stock-based compensation represented roughly 245.5% of operating cash flow, meaning reported cash generation is heavily inflated by this non-cash add-back.
The case for MicrosoftMicrosoft develops a wide range of software, cloud services, and hardware for consumers and large global enterprises. Its business spans three major segments including Productivity and Business Processes, Intelligent Cloud, and More Personal Computing. The company maintains a highly diversified customer base and maintains strategic relationships with key entities such as OpenAI. This ecosystem approach allows it to integrate artificial intelligence across a global platform.
In FY 2026, revenue reached nearly $331.8 billion, representing a year-over-year increase of approximately 17.8%. The company generated a net income of roughly $133.7 billion, which resulted in a net margin of close to 40.3%. This net margin indicates how much of every dollar in revenue becomes actual profit after all expenses.
As of its June 2026 balance sheet, the debt-to-equity ratio is approximately 0.3x, showing a low reliance on debt compared to shareholder equity. The current ratio is roughly 1.2x, which reflects the company's ability to pay off short term liabilities with its current assets. Free cash flow was strong at nearly $67 billion, representing the cash generated from operations after subtracting capital expenditures and providing significant flexibility for future growth.
Risk profile comparisonApplied Digital faces significant risks related to customer concentration, as a large portion of its revenue comes from a limited number of hyperscale customers. Any deterioration in their financial health could materially impact the business. Operations are heavily concentrated in North Dakota, creating exposure to regional infrastructure and regulatory risks. Furthermore, the company requires substantial capital for data center construction and carries significant debt.
Microsoft faces constant cybersecurity threats and data privacy risks that target its internal infrastructure. The company competes in a crowded market for artificial intelligence where Amazon and Alphabet also invest heavily. Global regulatory scrutiny regarding antitrust and AI safety remains an ongoing challenge. Additionally, the company is currently defending against multiple securities fraud class action lawsuits concerning its Copilot AI performance.
Valuation comparisonMetricApplied DigitalMicrosoftForward P/EN/A25.5xP/S ratio13.8x11.2xValuation metrics sourced from Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) and may differ from other data providers.
I'd go with Microsoft, which just closed an extraordinary fiscal year. To give Applied Digital its due, it is building AI data center infrastructure at a pace that few companies can match, and its most recent quarter was a genuine breakout. Its CoreWeave contract gives it long-term revenue visibility that was not there a year ago.
But Applied Digital is still a small, unprofitable business in a capital-intensive industry, and analysts expect earnings to turn sharply negative again over the next year as the company ramps construction. That kind of volatility is a lot to absorb.
Microsoft, meanwhile, is reporting record revenue across every major segment. Azure crossed a major milestone for the first time, Copilot paid seats more than doubled in a single quarter, and the company guided for continued acceleration heading into the new fiscal year. The stock had been under pressure for much of 2026 on concerns about AI spending, and the quarter put those concerns to rest in a big way.
For a long-term investor, owning one of the most profitable technology companies in the world at a moment when its AI strategy is clearly working is a stronger bet than a data center start-up still finding its financial footing.
Key Takeaways The 2026 Q2 earnings season has remained highly positive. The Mag 7 members have nearly all reported, with MSFT and AAPL delivering solid results. Of the seven members, NVIDIA remains the only one yet to report. Six of the beloved members of the Magnificent Seven have delivered their Q2 results, with only the most polarizing of the bunch, NVIDIA (NVDA - Free Report) , reflecting the last on the schedule. NVIDIA will report on August 26th.
Several members of the group, including Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) and Apple (AAPL - Free Report) , posted solid results overall, though the post-earnings reaction was much stronger for MSFT.
Apple Breaks RecordsApple’s results reflected its strongest June-quarter period ever, with quarterly revenue of $109.4 billion growing 16% year-over-year. Adjusted EPS came in at $2.02, growing an even stronger 29% from the year-ago period.
It also reported double-digit revenue growth across iPhone, Mac, and Services, with similar gains in every geographic segment. Its installed base of active devices reached an all-time high across its major product categories, with its overall gross margin seeing a benefit from tariff refunds.
As usual, the iPhone reflected the mega-cap tech giant’s biggest source of revenue, with sales coming in at $54.3 billion and growing by 21.6% year-over-year.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Though iPhone reflects the greatest portion of sales, the Services category has quickly grown to be another big top line contributor over recent years, with quarterly sales of $30.7 billion reflecting a 12% YoY increase.
Apple’s cash-generating abilities have always been a critical part of investor sentiment surrounding the stock, with it also reporting record operating cash flow for its June-quarter period. The strong cash-generating abilities have allowed shares to trade at a premium, with its dividend payouts pleasing investors looking to obtain top-tier tech exposure paired with paydays.
Microsoft Posts Huge Cloud Growth Microsoft posted a double-beat relative to our consensus expectations, with sales growing by 18% YoY alongside 23% YoY growth in earnings. Most importantly, the mega-cap heavyweight delivered favorable Intelligent Cloud results, a key benchmark the market has consistently scrutinized amid the billions it’s been investing in AI infrastructure.
Microsoft’s Intelligent Cloud results include Azure, its cloud computing platform that provides AI computing power to businesses. Intelligent Cloud revenue came in at $39.3 billion, beating our consensus estimate handily and growing 32% YoY. The growth rate here is mightily important from a sentiment standpoint, showing an acceleration relative to recent periods.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Enterprise adoption of Copilot surged throughout its FY26 to over 30 million paid seats, further underpinning the momentum the company is enjoying thanks to its AI-related investments.
Bottom Line
Six of beloved Mag 7 members have delivered their results, with just NVIDIA (NVDA - Free Report) the lone player yet to report. Both Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) and Apple (AAPL - Free Report) posted solid results, with each again seeing strong growth.
This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.
The AI leadership race got a fresh jolt today. SpaceX unveiled Grok 4.6, and Elon Musk claimed on X that “Grok 4.6 is objectively #1 when considering intelligence, speed & cost.” That framing puts pressure squarely on OpenAI and Anthropic, the two labs where Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) holds its most valuable AI equity stakes.
Why the Grok 4.6 Launch Matters for Microsoft Musk is not the only believer. Famed investor Gavin Baker posted on X that “Grok 4.6 is roughly the same performance as Fable 5 Max at an 85% discount. 80% cheaper for input tokens and 88% cheaper for output tokens. Pareto dominant. Grok 4.7 will be significantly better as is a much larger model with the Cursor and SpaceX data included in pretraining.”
Independent benchmarker Artificial Analysis confirmed the leap, writing that “SpaceXAI’s Grok 4.6 scores 61 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, joining the frontier in line with GPT-5.6 Sol, with standout agentic performance at lower cost.” Pricing sits at $2/$6 per 1M input/output tokens, 60%+ below Claude Opus 5 ($5/$25) and GPT-5.6 Sol ($5/$30), with cost per task at $0.84.
Models are now judged on unit economics as much as capability. Anthropic is reportedly targeting an IPO in September or early October, and OpenAI has confidentially filed. Both are racing to public markets on the strength of improving inference margins. A Pareto-dominant Grok, backed by SpaceX’s balance sheet and Cursor’s coding data, threatens to compress those margins just as investors are being asked to underwrite them.
Microsoft’s Exposure Cuts Both Ways Microsoft has meaningful exposure here. It holds a roughly 27% stake in OpenAI valued near $135 billion, plus an incremental $250 billion Azure commitment from OpenAI. It also booked a $3.20 billion gain on its Anthropic investment in Q4 FY2026, buoying earnings. If Grok’s aggressive pricing forces price cuts across the frontier, those equity marks and Azure workloads face real pressure.
The counterweight is Microsoft’s own scale. Q4 FY2026 revenue hit $90.01 billion, up 17.8% YoY, with non-GAAP EPS of $4.74. Azure grew 43% and crossed $100 billion in full-year revenue, Microsoft 365 Copilot passed 30 million paid seats, and commercial remaining performance obligations reached $678 billion, up 84%.
CEO Satya Nadella framed the strategy this way: “We are advancing the frontier on the cost-to-outcome curve, ensuring every customer can turn tokens into business results.” That cost-to-outcome language is exactly the battleground Grok 4.6 just entered.
What to Watch Next Microsoft shares trade at $492.12, up 27.8% over the past month, at a P/E near 28. The analyst target sits at $567.20. Watch whether Anthropic and OpenAI cut inference prices ahead of their IPO filings. If they do, Grok 4.6 has already dictated the terms.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Microsoft Corp. shares MSFT fell 2% in Wednesday morning trading as investors weighed fresh speculation about the company's in-house Maia AI chips against its rapidly rising infrastructure spending.
While the software giant has not confirmed reports that another Maia processor could launch as early as September, analysts increasingly view Microsoft's custom silicon strategy as a key component of its long-term artificial intelligence ambitions.
The pullback comes despite continued optimism around Microsoft's AI business following its strong fiscal fourth-quarter results, with investors focusing on whether massive capital investments can translate into sustained earnings growth and stronger Azure economics.
According to a Barron's report, Microsoft may unveil another Maia AI processor as early as September, although the company has not confirmed that timeline.
Microsoft already offers the Maia 200, a three-nanometer AI inference chip featuring more than 140 billion transistors and 216GB of high-bandwidth memory.
The processor is designed to handle AI workloads across Azure AI services and Microsoft 365 Copilot.
Rather than replacing chips supplied by Nvidia and AMD, Microsoft's custom silicon strategy is aimed at improving the economics of its AI infrastructure.
By shifting more AI inference workloads onto internally designed processors, the company could lower operating costs, optimize data center performance, and gain greater control over its AI technology stack.
Microsoft is investing tens of billions of dollars in AI infrastructure as the company looks to be independent of outside chipmakers.
Capital spending remains in focus despite strong AI demandMicrosoft has forecast Azure revenue growth of roughly 45% while quarterly capital expenditure is running at approximately $50 billion, underscoring the scale of its AI investment.
Debt accounts for 7.5% of total assets compared with a historical average of 19%, indicating the company is financing its expansion from a position of financial strength rather than excessive leverage.
Management has also indicated that capital expenditures will continue increasing during fiscal 2027, reflecting its commitment to expanding AI infrastructure.
Microsoft shares have climbed 26% since the company reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings on July 29, prompting some investors to question whether much of the optimism is already reflected in the stock price.
However, analysts argue that Microsoft's spending is directly tied to strong demand.
Azure demand exceeded available capacity during fiscal Q4 2026, while management expects Azure revenue growth of approximately 45% in constant currency during the first quarter of fiscal 2027.
Analysts said that investors should relook at Microsoft's investment case, instead of viewing higher spending as a wanring sign, view it as company preapring aggresively to support increasing AI demand.
Although Microsoft has underperformed the broader market over the past 12 months and remains about 6.5% below its 52-week high, analysts continue to view the company's AI investments and custom chip strategy as central to its long-term growth outlook.
The heavy spending required to stay competitive in the artificial intelligence (AI) race hasn't done any favors for the stock prices of Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft (MSFT -2.26%) in 2026. Of the four hyperscalers, only Amazon is outperforming the S&P 500 year to date.
That said, analysts have more favorable outlooks for those stocks over the next 12 months. Microsoft, however, appears to have the least upside potential of the group, but there's a caveat to those forecasts.
Image source: The Motley Fool.
The stocks with the most and least upside potential Among these four tech giants, Meta has the most favorable outlook, according to analysts. Among the 70 analysts covering the company tracked by CNN, the median one-year price target is $750. That would amount to a 26.6% gain from Meta's Aug. 7 closing price of $592.10.
For Alphabet, the median price target for Class C shares is $426.50, 20.6% higher than the Aug. 7 closing price of $353.47, while Amazon shares are expected to climb to $325, an 18.4% gain from their Aug. 7 closing price of $274.48.
That leaves Microsoft with the lowest expected gains of the pack. Its median price target of $555 is only 11% higher than its Aug. 7 closing price of $499.99.
With that price target, however, comes nuance: The outlook isn't as tepid as it appears on the surface.
Today's Change
(
-2.26
%) $
-11.38
Current Price
$
492.43
The rapid rise of Microsoft stock On July 29, Microsoft reported strong results for its fiscal 2026 fourth quarter, which ended June 30. And for the full fiscal year, its cloud infrastructure division, Azure, surpassed $100 billion in revenue for the first time. That growth is a sign that its capex spending is producing results, and investors applauded the news.
Fueled by those quarterly results, the stock's price surged; from July 23 to Aug. 7, Microsoft shares climbed by 31%. That rapid rise skewed the median price target to look worse than it is, as analysts expect the stock gains they predict to be more spaced out over a 12-month period rather than arriving in just a few weeks of trading.
With that rally behind the stock, analysts may start revising their targets, which means Microsoft's current median price target of $555 isn't anything to worry about. Investors are now more bullish on the stock, which is what helped push Microsoft shares closer to that target in the first place.
Jack Delaney has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares are pulling back Wednesday, giving back some ground after an extended run higher that followed the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report.
Microsoft stock is under selling pressure. Why are MSFT shares declining? MSFT Stock Pulls Back After Strong EarningsMicrosoft reported fourth-quarter revenue of $90.01 billion, up 18% year-over-year and ahead of the $87.62 billion analysts had expected, according to Benzinga Pro data. Earnings per share came in at $4.74, topping the $4.24 consensus estimate.
Growth was broad-based across the business. Intelligent Cloud revenue rose 32% year-over-year to $39.3 billion, with Azure and other cloud services revenue climbing 43%. Total cloud revenue across segments reached $59.3 billion, up 27% from a year earlier. For the full fiscal year, revenue totaled $331.8 billion, also up 18%.
CEO Satya Nadella pointed to two milestones from the year: Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion for the first time, and Microsoft 365 Copilot topped 30 million paid seats, which he said reflects growing customer confidence in Microsoft’s ability to power their AI initiatives.
MSFT Stock Looks Overextended After its RunThat divergence points to profit-taking after a sharp run. Even with today’s pullback, Microsoft remains 11.9% above its 20-day moving average of $440.39 and 13.9% above its 200-day moving average of $432.80, an extended setup that often invites buyers to wait for a better entry point rather than chase the stock higher. Momentum indicators aren’t flashing a warning sign, though: the MACD line remains above its signal line with a positive histogram, suggesting the stock’s recent upward pressure has yet to break down.
The moving-average picture carries a mixed signal further out. The 20-day average sitting above the 50-day average is a near-term positive, but the 50-day average has remained below the 200-day average since a January death cross, a longer-term caution flag that can keep larger investors from chasing strength at current levels.
Traders are watching $493.50 as resistance, just above the current price, and $409.50 as support, a level that lines up with the 50-day moving average zone if the pullback extends. Traders are watching $493.50 as resistance, just above the current price, and $409.50 as support, a level that lines up with the 50-day moving average zone if the pullback extends.
MSFT Shares Are FallingMSFT Price Action: Microsoft shares were down 1.96% at $493.96 at the time of publication on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro.
Read Next
Image: Shutterstock
Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
SummaryThe latest earnings season signals a shift: mega-cap tech's AI CapEx is increasingly accepted if clear revenue conversion is demonstrated.Valuations for hyperscalers like META, MSFT, AMZN, and NVDA remain suppressed, presenting an opportunity to accumulate shares amid ongoing volatility.Elevated volatility in ETFs like QQQ enhances option premiums, enabling income investors to amplify returns via strategic option ETFs such as GPIQ, QDVO, and GPTY.Option ETFs offer differentiated risk/reward profiles but require careful position sizing, as high yields may erode capital if tech momentum reverses. Max Zolotukhin/iStock via Getty Images
Overview For the last twelve months, the market has punished the hyperscalers because of the elevated spending on their AI infrastructure buildout. As the mega-cap leaders committed hundreds of billions towards CapEx, their free cash flow levels declined and created an environment of
9.05K Followers
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of QQQ, GPIQ, MSFT, META, GPTY either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
Microsoft (MSFT -2.28%) stock has been on quite a run since the company reported its results for the fourth quarter of its fiscal 2026 (which ended June 30). Microsoft delivered those results after the close of trading on July 29, and investors sent the stock skyrocketing the following day. They have continued bidding the stock higher, and it's now up by an impressive 26% since the report came out.
That's a huge run in a short time frame, and for a company as large as Microsoft, it may make investors feel like they've missed the boat. So, is it too late to buy shares for now? Or is this rally an indication of something new?
Image source: Getty Images.
Microsoft's rally takes it back to the top of big tech Microsoft is a major software company that is also diving deep into AI. It is exposed to AI in two ways: its internal products and its cloud computing business. Microsoft Copilot is its in-house AI tool meant to provide general AI use and also interface with the Office suite of productivity titles. This product reached over 30 million paid seats in the quarter, showcasing strong growth.
Today's Change
(
-2.28
%) $
-11.47
Current Price
$
492.34
However, cloud computing is more of a focus area for investors. Microsoft Azure continued to grow rapidly, with revenue rising 43% year over year. To make money, though, it must build cloud computing capacity and infrastructure, which is why Microsoft is spending hundreds of billions of dollars on data centers. While some of Microsoft's hyperscaler competitors, like Amazon (AMZN -1.43%) and Alphabet (GOOG -0.56%) (GOOGL -0.53%), recently increased their already lofty spending capex expectations for 2026, Microsoft left its capex guidance unchanged. The market is worried that the AI hyperscalers may be overspending on their data center build-outs, so the news that Microsoft was not planning to further accelerate its outlays this year likely helped bolster its share price.
Still, the biggest reason why Microsoft had such a rapid rise following its earnings report was how cheap the stock was ahead of it. At the start of July and leading up to the release date, Microsoft stock traded for less than 20 times forward earnings -- its cheapest valuation in a long time. Considering how strong a business Microsoft is, this valuation level made no sense.
MSFT PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts.
Microsoft now trades at a far more reasonable level. It's still on the low end of its recent levels, but it is also at the higher end of the valuation spectrum compared to some of its big tech peers.
MSFT PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts.
In short, many investors have missed their opportunity to buy Microsoft at the dirt cheap levels it traded at earlier this summer. While I still think Microsoft can be a successful and market-beating investment over the next few years, a lot of the growth the stock had coming was delivered in just a few days.
Keithen Drury has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
A security researcher has published details of a new vulnerability in the latest versions of Windows that allows hackers to gain system-wide access to the user’s device and data, despite facing a legal threat from Microsoft weeks earlier over the release of previously unknown software flaws.
The new bug, dubbed ShieldBreak, is the latest disclosure by security researcher Nightmare Eclipse, who in recent months has published details of several bugs affecting Microsoft’s products, including Windows.
According to Nightmare Eclipse’s post, ShieldBreak takes advantage of a flaw in Windows Defender, the anti-malware and security engine built into Windows. A successful attack allows the hacker to escalate their permissions from a low-level user to full access to the device and its data.
Nightmare Eclipse published the proof-of-concept exploit as a Windows app, requiring the user to run the app to exploit the bug. The bug works on Windows 10, Windows 11 (including the latest 25H2 version), and Windows Server 2025, the researcher said.
Security researcher Will Dormann verified that the bug works and that Windows Defender must be enabled for the exploit to work.
The latest exploit builds on an earlier exploit that Nightmare Eclipse developed dubbed RoguePlanet, according to Nightmare Eclipse. Microsoft rolled out a patch for RoguePlanet, but the researcher implied that Microsoft’s fix was not sufficient and that their latest exploit demonstrates a full bypass of the earlier patch.
Microsoft has not yet released a patch for the ShieldBreak bug. A spokesperson for Microsoft did not immediately comment when contacted by TechCrunch. The bug is considered a zero-day because the software maker — in this case, Microsoft — was given no time to patch the bug before it was publicly disclosed.
The release of this new zero-day is the latest in a long back-and-forth between the security researcher and the software giant over the company’s alleged handling of their bug reports.
In a series of blog posts, the security researcher claimed that Microsoft mistreated them and did not handle their bug reports sufficiently, with the implication that the researcher had no other choice but to publicly disclose the bugs online. Nightmare Eclipse previously released several other bugs in Windows that were later exploited in real-world attacks to hack into organizations.
In May, Microsoft published a blog post threatening to take legal action against security researchers, like Nightmare Eclipse, if they released details of zero-days outside of the company’s disclosure policies. The company faced heavy rebuke from the security community, many of whom described similar experiences with Microsoft’s handling of their bug reports. Microsoft later walked back the comments in a social media post. Its original blog post remains published and unchanged.
ShieldBreak lands a day after Microsoft’s regularly scheduled monthly security patch releases, dubbed Patch Tuesday. This is the second month in a row where the number of patches has reached around 500 or so bugs driven by the company’s growing use of AI to find and weed out security flaws.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence.
Zack Whittaker is the security editor at TechCrunch. He also authors the weekly cybersecurity newsletter, this week in security.
He can be reached via encrypted message at zackwhittaker.1337 on Signal. You can also contact him by email, or to verify outreach, at [email protected].
I think the primary reason everyone is talking about Microsoft (MSFT -0.45%) is its cloud segment growth.
*Stock prices used were the afternoon prices of Aug. 7, 2026. The video was published on Aug.9, 2026.
Parkev Tatevosian, CFA has positions in Microsoft. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Parkev Tatevosian is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through his link, he will earn some extra money that supports his channel. His opinions remain his own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.
SÃO PAULO--(BUSINESS WIRE)---- $III #AI--Brazilian firms are adopting Microsoft AI and cloud technologies to improve business performance and respond to evolving requirements, ISG says.
ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sionic, a leader in real-time, bank-to-bank payments at the point of sale, today announced the availability launch of its Instant Bank Pay service alongside Fraud Detection Service in Microsoft Marketplace, the unified online destination for customers to buy trusted cloud solutions, AI apps, and agents to meet their business needs. Sionic customers can now discover and deploy trusted solutions through Microsoft Marketplace, with smooth integration and streamlined manag.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) has climbed back into the spotlight after a blockbuster Q4 report, and Wall Street is nearly unanimous on where it goes next. Of 54 analysts covering the stock, 14 rate it Strong Buy, 40 Buy, and just 3 Hold, with zero sell ratings. Our own model agrees, and then some.
The 24/7 Wall St. price target for Microsoft is $604.39, implying 19.96% upside from the current price of $503.81. Our recommendation is buy with high confidence at 90%.
24/7 Wall St. Price Target Summary Metric Value Current Price $503.81 24/7 Wall St. Price Target $604.39 Upside 19.96% Recommendation BUY Confidence Level 90% From Post-Earnings Surge to a $100B Azure Milestone Microsoft has run 30.83% over the past month and 2.23% in the past week, though shares are still 2.67% below where they traded a year ago. The stock sits roughly 2% off its 52-week high of $550.24, well above the 52-week low of $349.20.
The July 29 Q4 FY2026 report was the catalyst. Microsoft posted revenue of $90.01 billion, up 17.75% YoY, and non-GAAP EPS of $4.74 versus a $4.24 estimate, an 11.81% beat and the fifth straight quarter of topping expectations.
Azure grew 43% and crossed $100 billion in annual revenue for the first time, while commercial remaining performance obligations vaulted 84% to $678 billion. Copilot paid seats topped 30 million.
The Case for $620 and Higher Bulls point to RPO of $678 billion, meaning Microsoft has locked in years of cloud revenue before it hits the income statement. Azure’s 43% growth is accelerating.
Copilot monetization is scaling faster than projected, and management retains optionality on OpenAI, where Microsoft holds roughly a 27% stake worth an estimated $135 billion. Our bull scenario points to $629.58, or 24.96% upside, if AI monetization continues surprising to the upside.
What Could Go Wrong Capex is the big variable. FY26 capital expenditures reached $115.95 billion, up 109.6%, and Q4 free cash flow fell 23.2% despite record earnings. Bulls counter that this is investment in AI infrastructure fueling that $678 billion RPO backlog, not wasted spend.
Insider selling has picked up, and prediction markets show only a 55% probability of MSFT closing above $500 this week. Our bear case lands at $517.36, essentially flat, if capex returns underwhelm.
How Microsoft Compares to Alphabet and Oracle Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is the cleanest hyperscaler comparison. Google Cloud grew 82% in Q2 2026 to $24.77 billion, faster than Azure, yet Alphabet trades at just a 15 P/E. That gap makes Microsoft’s 28 P/E look full, though MSFT commands a premium for margin quality and Copilot’s enterprise lock-in.
Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) is the pure-play AI infrastructure comp. Oracle’s IaaS revenue grew 93% YoY in Q4 FY26, and its RPO stands at $638 billion, comparable to Microsoft’s $678 billion but on a $419 billion market cap. Oracle’s growth rate is higher, but Microsoft delivers 40.3% net margins versus Oracle’s negative free cash flow. The peer set makes our $604.39 target look reasonable.
Company P/E Cloud Growth Microsoft 28 43% (Azure) Alphabet 15 82% (Google Cloud) Oracle n/a 93% (IaaS) Microsoft Price Prediction 2026-2030 The 24/7 Wall St. price target of $604.39 reflects a buy with 90% confidence. Microsoft is sitting on $678 billion of contracted commercial commitments, a backlog that anchors years of forward cloud revenue.
I’d be a buyer if Azure holds a 40%+ growth rate through FY27. I’d stay on the sidelines if capex growth outpaces cloud revenue growth for two straight quarters. The risk-reward favors ownership.
Year 24/7 Wall St. Price Target 2026 $604.39 2027 $605.73 2028 $700.20 2029 $752.66 2030 $837.87 These projections assume Microsoft continues converting its RPO backlog into recognized revenue and holds cloud operating margins in the mid-40s. Significant upside or downside could result from AI monetization surprises or a sharper-than-expected capex cycle.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC grew its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 12.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,561 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,117 shares during the quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $14,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insiders Place Their Bets In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. China Renaissance decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on Microsoft from $502.00 to $522.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $559.16.
View Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft
Microsoft Trading Down 0.4% NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $3.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $407.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $407.37. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.27%.
Microsoft News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)
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).
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEBank of America Corp DE Purchases 767,913 Shares of JPMorgan International Bond Opportunities ETF $JPIB
NEXT HEADLINE »Bank of America Corp DE Sells 48,564 Shares of Pentair plc $PNR
44 Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 4.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 40,419 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,580 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises 5.2% of 44 Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest position. 44 Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $14,962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Van Diest Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 128.8% in the first quarter. Van Diest Capital LLC now owns 13,448 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $4,978,000 after acquiring an additional 7,571 shares during the last quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA boosted its position in Microsoft by 7.5% during the first quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 341,058 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $126,249,000 after purchasing an additional 23,686 shares during the last quarter. Mustico Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Microsoft by 21.7% in the first quarter. Mustico Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,477 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $917,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Private Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,152,000. Finally, Unio Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 32.4% during the 1st quarter. Unio Capital LLC now owns 121,057 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $44,812,000 after purchasing an additional 29,615 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Trending Headlines about Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several research firms have recently commented on MSFT. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, May 4th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Microsoft from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $660.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday. Citizens Jmp restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 20th. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $559.16.
Get Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft
Insiders Place Their Bets In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Trading Down 0.4% Shares of MSFT stock opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $407.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $407.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $553.72.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The company had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 20.27%.
About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Cumberland Partners Ltd reduced its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 21.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 149,757 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 41,879 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up 4.2% of Cumberland Partners Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Cumberland Partners Ltd’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $55,436,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its holdings 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. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several brokerages have commented on MSFT. Raymond James Financial lowered Microsoft from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 6th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $559.16.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MSFT
Microsoft Trading Down 0.4% MSFT opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $407.02 and its 200-day moving average is $407.37. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $349.20 and a 52-week high of $553.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.
Microsoft News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
See Also Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEBank of America Corp DE Has $50.03 Million Stake in Rubrik, Inc. $RBRK
NEXT HEADLINE »Bank of America Corp DE Has $52.43 Million Stake in Dimensional US High Profitability ETF $DUHP
Blue Chip Partners LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 1.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 102,117 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,314 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 2.7% of Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $37,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 4.9% during the third quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC now owns 431 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC now owns 697 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.8% during the third quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,453,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Better Money Decisions LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,740,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Microsoft News Roundup Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $545.00 to $512.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $559.16.
View Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft
Microsoft Trading Down 0.4% Shares of MSFT opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $553.72. The business has a 50-day moving average of $407.02 and a 200 day moving average of $407.37. The firm has a market cap of $3.74 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company’s revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.
Insider Buying and Selling In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Recommended Stories Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEEmpowered Funds LLC Has $281.15 Million Holdings in Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL
NEXT HEADLINE »Microsoft Corporation $MSFT is Cypress Capital Group’s 3rd Largest Position
Cypress Capital Group trimmed its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 2.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,840 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 2,027 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 3.4% of Cypress Capital Group’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Cypress Capital Group’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $30,665,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 287.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, University of Illinois Foundation purchased a new stake in Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at $50,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of analysts have issued reports on MSFT shares. Arete Research raised their target price on Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $515.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price target on Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $559.16.
Read Our Latest Report on Microsoft
Insider Activity at Microsoft In other Microsoft news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330 in the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Microsoft Stock Down 0.4% Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business’s 50 day moving average is $407.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $407.37. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $349.20 and a 52-week high of $553.72. The firm has a market cap of $3.74 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.05, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.27%.
More Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)
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).
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEBlue Chip Partners LLC Acquires 1,314 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT
NEXT HEADLINE »Ardmore Road Asset Management LP Has $29.61 Million Holdings in Microsoft Corporation $MSFT
Ardmore Road Asset Management LP cut its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 13.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 80,000 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 12,765 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up approximately 2.0% of Ardmore Road Asset Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Ardmore Road Asset Management LP’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $29,614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Microsoft by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 717,942,580 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $347,211,391,000 after acquiring an additional 15,955,898 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 306,150,608 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $148,060,557,000 after purchasing an additional 6,388,930 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 182,618,400 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $88,056,019,000 after purchasing an additional 1,911,142 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 121,220,561 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $58,624,690,000 after purchasing an additional 980,439 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $50,664,631,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes Several research analysts recently commented on MSFT shares. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, July 24th. New Street Research reduced their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Phillip Securities cut shares of Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. CLSA restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $559.16.
Read Our Latest Analysis on Microsoft
Microsoft Price Performance Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $553.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $407.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $407.37.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.
Microsoft News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Recommended Stories Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT trimmed its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 733,631 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 27,420 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 4.2% of Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $271,568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 7.5% during the first quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 341,058 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $126,249,000 after buying an additional 23,686 shares in the last quarter. Mustico Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 21.7% during the first quarter. Mustico Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,477 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the period. Matrix Private Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the first quarter worth approximately $1,152,000. Unio Capital LLC boosted its position in Microsoft by 32.4% during the first quarter. Unio Capital LLC now owns 121,057 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $44,812,000 after acquiring an additional 29,615 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC now owns 346,829 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $128,386,000 after acquiring an additional 10,771 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of brokerages have weighed in on MSFT. Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their price target on Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $660.00 target price on Microsoft in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $559.16.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on MSFT
Insider Transactions at Microsoft In related news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Stock Performance Shares of MSFT stock opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $407.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $407.37. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $553.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $3.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.65 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 20.27%.
Trending Headlines about Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)
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).
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 3.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 346,829 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,771 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up about 6.0% of Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Aristotle Atlantic Partners LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $128,386,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its position in Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd 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. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 4.9% in the third quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC now owns 431 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Fischer Investment Strategies LLC now owns 697 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $337,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% in the third quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,453,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Better Money Decisions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.6% during the second quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,740,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets Several brokerages recently weighed in on MSFT. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $510.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Argus decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Dbs Bank cut their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $586.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $559.16.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Microsoft
Microsoft News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Microsoft Stock Performance Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $407.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $407.37. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 20.27%.
Insider Buying and Selling In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Microsoft Profile (Free Report)
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).
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEAssenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Stock Position in TotalEnergies SE Sponsored ADR $TTE
NEXT HEADLINE »Bank of America Corp DE Boosts Stock Position in Dimensional International Core Equity 2 ETF $DFIC
Aristotle Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,377,893 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 145,065 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for about 2.6% of Aristotle Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Aristotle Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,250,416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Microsoft Trading Down 0.4% Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $503.81 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $407.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $407.37. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72. The company has a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.65 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 20.27%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $502.00 to $522.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. President Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $559.16.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Microsoft
More Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s latest earnings showed stronger-than-expected profitability and revenue, with Azure growth and Copilot adoption reinforcing the view that substantial AI investment is beginning to generate returns. Hedge funds and institutional investors continue to favor Microsoft over some other mega-cap technology names. Hedge Funds Favor Microsoft Over Meta Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target to $660 and maintained an Outperform rating, arguing that Microsoft’s data-center expansion is measured, flexible, and supported by durable cloud demand. Other analysts also identified Azure growth, backlog, and institutional buying as potential catalysts for a year-end rally. Bernstein Raises Microsoft Target Positive Sentiment: Reports that Microsoft may unveil its Maia 300 AI chip as early as September and secure production capacity for more than 300,000 units could reduce reliance on Nvidia processors, lower long-term AI costs, and support Microsoft’s cloud strategy. Microsoft Maia 300 Chip Report Insider Activity at Microsoft 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 stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)
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).
Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Microsoft Atlassian Just Pulled Off the Software Comeback Wall Street Wanted AST SpaceMobile Earnings Just Reminded Investors How Risky Space Can Be NVIDIA’s Rally Sets Up a Bigger Test Ahead of Earnings Apple’s Next iPhone Could Test How Much Pricing Power Is Left
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEiShares Core International Aggregate Bond ETF $IAGG Shares Sold by CoreCap Advisors LLC
NEXT HEADLINE »Masco Corporation $MAS Stock Holdings Trimmed by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.
For the last five years, I've been the person rolling my eyes at Microsoft's (MSFT -0.45%) valuation and calling it priced for perfection. Today, after its latest set of numbers and the way the company has embedded itself into AI, cloud, and everyday work, I'm finally willing to say it: At these levels, Microsoft is an easy buy for a long‑term investor.
Back in the 2021 to 2022 time frame, my skepticism sounded reasonable. Microsoft was trading at a rich multiple compared with its own history, and it felt like everyone already knew the bull case: dominant Windows, sticky Office, and fast‑growing Azure. I kept waiting for growth to slow or margins to crack.
Instead, 2026 gave a very different picture. In the fiscal year that ended June 30, Microsoft's revenue climbed 18% to more than $331 billion, while operating income rose 21% to more than $155 billion. Net income hit $133.7 billion, with full‑year EPS growth comfortably above 20% even after stripping out gains from OpenAI and Anthropic investments. Those are not the numbers of a mature company just coasting on its legacy.
Image source: Getty Images.
Microsoft is turning into an AI tycoon The AI story is where I was most wrong. I assumed the AI halo would be mostly narrative. Instead, it has become a concrete, growing business.
In the latest quarter, revenue reached $90 billion, up 18% year over year, driven by 32% growth in the Intelligent Cloud segment and Azure revenue now surpassing $100 billion annually. Microsoft says its AI business has crossed a $37 billion annual run rate, growing 123% year over year. This is not really a side hustle. It's a growth engine.
On top of this, Azure grew 43% year over year in fiscal Q4 2026, and CEO Satya Nadella said Microsoft's custom AI chips can deliver up to 40% better performance per watt, potentially improving cloud margins and earnings.
Today's Change
(
-0.45
%) $
-2.25
Current Price
$
503.81
Copilot is the clearest proof that this is real monetization, not just GPU reselling. Microsoft 365 Copilot has already passed 30 million paid seats, with net seat adds more than doubling quarter over quarter as enterprises move from pilots to production.
Microsoft is rolling Copilot out across knowledge work, coding, security, and even as a super app that ties consumer and commercial experiences together. That means AI is getting woven into the subscription backbone of the company's productivity and business software.
The part that finally changed my mind, though, is the valuation-versus-execution debate. As of early August 2026, Microsoft trades at a trailing P/E of 28 to 28.5, which is slightly below its 10‑year average of 30. Forward P/E estimates sit around 25 based on current consensus, even as the company continues to grow revenue in the high teens and EPS in the low-to-mid‑20s.
That is not cheap in an absolute sense, but for a business with Microsoft's moat and growth profile, it looks more like fair for a wonderful company than irrational exuberance.
I think it's time to buy Could I wait for a better entry point? Sure. There will always be a pullback. But the last five years have taught me that trying to shave a few multiple points off the price has been far more costly than simply owning a compounding machine that keeps finding new profit pools -- first cloud, now AI, and next whatever sits on top of that stack.
Microsoft today is not just a safe blue chip; it is one of the few companies genuinely defining the next era of enterprise computing. I spent half a decade treating it as too expensive. Now I'm much more worried about the opportunity cost of staying on the sidelines.
The 150 MWac solar facility near Mildura will generate enough renewable energy to power approximately 65,000 Australian households annually and includes a dedicated fund to support community-led sustainability initiatives
, /PRNewswire/ -- Recurrent Energy, a subsidiary of Canadian Solar Inc. ("Canadian Solar") (NASDAQ: CSIQ) and a leading global developer, owner, and operator of solar and energy storage assets, today announced that its 150MWac Carwarp Energy Park near Mildura, Victoria, Australia, has reached commercial operation. The project is backed by a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with Microsoft and strengthens Recurrent Energy's track record of delivering and operating large-scale renewable energy projects in Australia.
Carwarp Energy Park is connected to the National Electricity Market through the 220 kV Victorian transmission network. The project also has planning and grid approvals to incorporate a hybrid 120 MW battery energy storage system (BESS), creating a clear pathway to support grid flexibility and reliability across the National Electricity Market.
The asset incorporates approximately 243,000 high-efficiency Canadian Solar TOPCon modules and is expected to generate around 405 GWh of electricity annually — enough to power approximately 65,000 Australian households with renewable energy. The facility is also expected to avoid approximately 227,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions each year, equivalent to removing more than 49,000 internal combustion engine vehicles from the road. These figures underscore the project's contribution to Victoria's renewable energy targets and long-term decarbonization roadmap.
Carwarp Energy Park was delivered in accordance with rigorous standards and with active community engagement throughout development and construction. To date, the project has supported approximately 300 construction jobs and continues to drive local economic benefits and employment through its operating phase.
As part of this collaboration with Microsoft and through its Community CaRE program, Recurrent Energy has established a dedicated community benefit fund for Carwarp Energy Park. The fund will be administered in Australia by Groundswell Giving, and the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR). It is designed to support community-led climate and environmental initiatives in rural and metropolitan communities, connected to the project's wider energy and infrastructure footprint, including initiatives led by First Nations communities. This reinforces Recurrent Energy and Microsoft's shared commitment to ensuring the energy transition delivers both clean power and enduring community value.
Dylan Marx, CEO at Recurrent Energy, commented, "Carwarp Energy Park reaching commercial operation ahead of schedule demonstrates our ability to deliver high-quality, large-scale renewable infrastructure safely and efficiently. With a long-term PPA secured with Microsoft, an established community fund, and approval to incorporate energy storage, Carwarp is positioned to provide strong community benefits, clean energy, and additional grid benefits for years to come. We thank our partners for their continued support and look forward to advancing the project's approved storage pathway to deliver further benefits for the Australian energy network and customers."
Liz Fitch, Head of Corporate, External and Legal Affairs for Microsoft Australia and New Zealand, added, "Australia's transition to a low-carbon economy will require sustained investment in the energy infrastructure that underpins future growth. Projects like Carwarp Energy Park are an important part of that effort, adding new renewable generation to the grid while supporting regional communities and long-term economic opportunity. As demand for clean electricity grows, including from digital technologies and infrastructure, collaborations like this help strengthen Australia's energy system and position the country to lead in a more sustainable and innovative future."
About Recurrent Energy
Recurrent Energy, a subsidiary of Canadian Solar Inc., is one of the world's largest and most geographically diversified utility-scale solar and energy storage project development, ownership, and operations platforms. With an industry-leading team of in-house energy experts, Recurrent Energy serves as Canadian Solar's global development and power services business. To date, Recurrent Energy has successfully developed, built, and connected 12 GWp of solar projects and more than 5 GWh of energy storage projects across six continents. As of September 30, 2025, its global pipeline includes approximately 23 GWp of solar power and 73 GWh of energy storage capacity. The company also has over 14 GW of solar and energy storage projects under operations and maintenance (O&M) contracts. These figures exclude China. Additional details are available at www.recurrentenergy.com.
About Canadian Solar
Canadian Solar is one of the world's largest solar technology and renewable energy companies. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Kitchener, Ontario, the Company is a leading manufacturer of solar photovoltaic modules; provider of solar energy and battery energy storage solutions; and developer, owner, and operator of utility-scale solar power and battery energy storage projects. Over the past 24 years, Canadian Solar has successfully delivered nearly 170 GW of premium-quality, solar photovoltaic modules to customers across the world. Through its subsidiary e-STORAGE, Canadian Solar has shipped over 16 GWh of battery energy storage solutions to global markets as of September 30, 2025, boasting a $3.1 billion contracted backlog as of October 31, 2025. Since entering the project development business in 2010, Canadian Solar has developed, built, and connected approximately 12 GWp of solar power projects and 6 GWh of battery energy storage projects globally. Its geographically diversified project development pipeline includes 25 GWp of solar and 81 GWh of battery energy storage capacity in various stages of development. Canadian Solar is one of the most bankable companies in the solar and renewable energy industry, having been publicly listed on the NASDAQ since 2006. For additional information about the Company, follow Canadian Solar on LinkedIn or visit www.canadiansolar.com.
Safe Harbor/Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release, including those regarding the Company's expected future shipment volumes, revenues, gross margins, and project sales are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These statements are made under the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by such terms as "may", "will", "expect", "anticipate", "future", "ongoing", "continue", "intend", "plan", "potential", "prospect", "guidance", "believe", "estimate", "is/are likely to" or similar expressions, the negative of these terms, or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, our expectations regarding global electricity demand and the adoption of solar and battery energy storage technologies; our growth strategies, future business performance, and financial condition; our transition to a long-term owner and operator of clean energy assets and expansion of project pipelines; our ability to monetize project portfolios, manage supply chain fluctuations, and respond to economic factors such as inflation and interest rates; our outlook on government incentives, trade measures, regulatory developments, and geopolitical risks; our expectations for project timelines, costs, and returns; competitive dynamics in solar and storage markets; our ability to execute supply chain, manufacturing, and operational initiatives; access to capital, debt obligations, and covenant compliance; relationships with key suppliers and customers; technological advancement and product quality; and risks related to intellectual property, litigation, and compliance with environmental and sustainability regulations. Other risks were described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F filed on April 10, 2026. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee future results, level of activity, performance, or achievements. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All information provided in this press release is as of today's date, unless otherwise stated, and Canadian Solar undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.
CANADIAN SOLAR INC. INVESTOR RELATIONS CONTACT
Wina Huang
Investor Relations
Canadian Solar Inc.
[email protected]
Recurrent Energy Media Inquiries
Inés Arrimadas
Recurrent Energy
[email protected]
The environmental equivalencies referenced in this press release were calculated using the following publicly available sources:
Average household energy consumption (Australia): Australian Energy Regulator (AER), Residential Energy Consumption Benchmarks, 9 December 2020. Emission factor for grid-supplied electricity (Australia): Climatiq emission factor database. Average passenger vehicle emissions: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a Typical Passenger Vehicle. Figures are estimates provided for illustrative purposes only and are based on the assumptions and methodologies of the sources cited above.
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Portnoy Law Firm advises Microsoft Corporation, (“Microsoft” or the "Company") (NASDAQ: MSFT) investors of a class action on behalf of investors that bought securities between May 1, 2025 and January 28, 2026, inclusive (the “Class Period”). Microsoft investors have until August 11, 2026 to file a lead plaintiff motion.
Satya Nadella's record $96.5 million pay package is really a mirror of how tightly his financial fate is now tied to Microsoft's (MSFT -0.45%) artificial intelligence (AI) future, and I think that matters a lot for anyone holding the stock. In fiscal 2025, Microsoft's board disclosed that Nadella's total compensation rose about 22%, from 79.1 million to roughly 96.5 million, the highest since he became CEO in 2014.
Microsoft had just posted a powerful year, with revenue up about 15%, operating income up 17%, and cloud revenue up 23% to nearly $169 billion, while Azure revenue grew 34% and surpassed $75 billion. The proxy statement and board commentary explicitly cited "exceptional progress in artificial intelligence" and said that Nadella's leadership had positioned Microsoft as a clear AI leader amid a generational technology shift.
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. Image source: Microsoft Corporation.
When you look at the structure of that pay, the alignment jumps out. The base salary is only $2.5 million. Around $9.5 million is a cash bonus. The rest, roughly $84 million, is stock awards that move directly with Microsoft's share price. The proxy explains that over 95% of his annual target compensation is performance-based, and at least 70% is equity. His performance stock awards are tied to long-term metrics, including total shareholder return relative to the S&P 500, Microsoft incentive plan revenue, Azure and other cloud services revenue, and Microsoft Cloud revenue. In other (more simple) words, Nadella gets paid when the business grows, margins hold up, the stock outperforms, and the cloud-plus-AI engine keeps compounding.
Today's Change
(
-0.45
%) $
-2.25
Current Price
$
503.81
What does this mean for investors? For investors like us, this is exactly what you want to see. There is obviously a gut reaction to a $96.5 million headline number, especially when the CEO-to-median-employee pay ratio is nearly 480-to-1, as of 2025. But the question is not whether the figure feels large. It is whether the incentives push the leader toward decisions that create durable value instead of short-term optics. Microsoft has deliberately avoided time-based stock grants for Nadella and uses overlapping performance periods, TSR modifiers, and multiyear vesting to keep him focused on long horizons rather than quarter-to-quarter spikes.
To me, the signal in this package is clear. Microsoft's board thinks artificial intelligence and cloud are the core of the story for the next decade, and it has structured Nadella's personal economics so that he wins only if shareholders win, too. You can debate the exact dollar amount, but if you own the stock, having a CEO whose pay lives and dies with the same AI-driven metrics that support your thesis is a lot better than the alternative.
Microsoft (MSFT -0.45%) is gaining momentum after reporting quarterly financial results.
*Stock prices used were the afternoon prices of Aug. 6, 2026. The video was published on Aug.8, 2026.
Parkev Tatevosian, CFA has positions in Microsoft. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Parkev Tatevosian is an affiliate of The Motley Fool and may be compensated for promoting its services. If you choose to subscribe through his link, he will earn some extra money that supports his channel. His opinions remain his own and are unaffected by The Motley Fool.
Not long after I bought Microsoft Corporation's dip, it recovered by over 20%. That sharp stock price jump left investors wondering whether MSFT is still a good buy. Competition in the cloud remains intense, as AWS and Google Cloud posted larger-scale or faster segment growth, challenging Azure's struggle for leadership.
NEW YORK, Aug. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Microsoft Corporation (“Microsoft” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: MSFT). Such investors are advised to contact Danielle Peyton at [email protected] or 646-581-9980, (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.
Microsoft (MSFT) has emerged as Mizuho's preferred software stock through year-end, with analyst Jordan Klein seeing room for Azure growth to accelerate as the
The bull market that began in late 2022 has in recent months appeared to have run its course. Experts say that may be the opposite of what was happening.
New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - August 11, 2026) - Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC, a nationally recognized investor-rights law firm, announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) and certain of its officers.
This lawsuit seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Microsoft securities between May 1, 2025 and January 28, 2026, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/MSFT.
Microsoft Case Details
The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements because they failed to disclose that:
Microsoft's Copilot family of products had experienced significant brand positioning, user experience, usage, data siloing, computational capacity, organizational, and interoperability problems; Microsoft's flagship proprietary AI model ranked well below competitors on a number of benchmark tests; Microsoft needed to increase by billions of dollars its capital expenditures and divert graphics processing unit ("GPU") and central processing unit ("CPU") capacity away from fulfilling demand for its profitable Azure services in order to improve the competitive positioning of its critical Copilot family of products and increase its AI-related research and development ("R&D"); and as a result of the above, Microsoft had failed to convert a significant percentage of its commercial Microsoft 365 users to paid Copilot subscriptions and Microsoft's Copilot offerings had lost market share to rival products, a trend that was increasing.What's Next for Microsoft Investors?
A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint, you can visit the firm's site: bgandg.com/MSFT, or you may contact Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or his Client Relations Manager, Nathan Miller, of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC at 917-590-0911. If you suffered a loss in Microsoft you have until August 11, 2026, to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff.
No Cost to Microsoft Investors
We, Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman LLC, represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.
Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC for Microsoft Securities Class Action?
Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide. More at www.bgandg.com
"Our practice centers on restoring investor capital and ensuring corporate accountability, which serves to uphold the essential integrity of the marketplace," said Peretz Bronstein, Founding Partner of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC.
Follow us for updates on LinkedIn, X, Facebook, or Instagram.
Attorney advertising.
Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/301539
Source: Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC
Ready to Announce with Confidence? Send us a message and a member of our TMX Newsfile team will contact you to discuss your needs.
If I had to bet on one Buffett‑worthy stock that Warren Buffett himself never pulled the trigger on but Greg Abel could eventually bless, my money would be on Microsoft (MSFT +1.21%).
Buffett has said for years that he admires the business but stayed away for reasons that had little to do with fundamentals. That's exactly what makes it such an interesting candidate in the Abel era.
Former Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett. Image source: The Motley Fool.
Buffett has been uncharacteristically blunt about why Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB +1.46%) (BRKA +1.76%) never owned Microsoft. He's called his failure to buy in early "stupidity," but once his friendship with Bill Gates deepened and Gates joined Berkshire's board, he decided buying Microsoft would always look like a conflict of interest, even if nothing improper occurred.
In his words, "It just would be a mistake for Berkshire to buy Microsoft" because if the stock popped on earnings or an acquisition right after a purchase, critics would assume Gates had leaked information. So Microsoft became one of a small handful of companies explicitly "off the list," not because it failed Berkshire's investment criteria, but because of optics and ethics.
Today's Change
(
1.21
%) $
6.07
Current Price
$
506.06
Abel is a different leader Those constraints look different under Greg Abel. Gates is no longer on Berkshire's board, the Buffett and Bill era has clearly passed, and Abel has already pushed the portfolio toward more technology and AI‑linked names, including a large expansion of Berkshire's Alphabet position. The ethical rationale for avoiding Microsoft is weaker than it was a decade ago, yet the business is even more clearly a fit for the Berkshire mold.
Microsoft looks Buffett-investor-friendly On the numbers, Microsoft looks like the kind of wonderful company trading at a fair price Buffett has always said he prefers. In fiscal 2026, Microsoft's revenue grew 18% to more than $331 billion, with operating income up 21% and net income up 31%.
The company's cloud and AI engine is extraordinary: In Q4 alone, revenue hit $90 billion, Microsoft Cloud revenue reached $59.3 billion (up 27%), and the AI business crossed a $37 billion annual run rate, growing 123% year over year. Those are wide‑moat economics -- recurring subscription revenue, mission‑critical software, and a dominant cloud platform that enterprises are building on for the next decade.
Valuation, which kept many value investors cautious for years, no longer looks absurd next to that growth profile. As of early August 2026, Microsoft traded at a trailing P/E just under 29, slightly below its 10‑year average of around 30, and forward estimates put the multiple closer to 25. For a business with high‑teens revenue growth, very high returns on capital, and a fortress balance sheet, that is more of a justified premium than bubble territory.
Most importantly, Microsoft fits the qualitative side of the Berkshire checklist. It has:
A durable competitive advantage in operating systems, productivity software, and cloud infrastructure. Products that are deeply embedded in customer workflows, which makes revenue highly sticky. Management that has shown disciplined capital allocation, reinvesting heavily in cloud and AI while still returning cash via dividends and buybacks. Abel has already demonstrated that he is willing to own complex tech businesses when their economics are undeniable, as evidenced by Berkshire's growing Alphabet stake. Microsoft is cut from the same cloth.
No one outside Omaha can know what Berkshire will actually buy next. But if you strip away the personal history and focus purely on the mold (high‑quality, cash‑gushing, competitively entrenched, and sensibly valued), Microsoft looks like exactly the kind of stock Buffett spent decades praising but not owning, and the kind Abel may one day be far less hesitant to make a cornerstone holding.
The trouble with tech is that many companies want to be at the forefront of innovation. That means the top growth businesses can't simply sit idle, take their time, and make cautious decisions when investing in new technologies. Instead, it's often spend first, think later.
That, however, creates the potential for overspending, which is what many analysts and investors worry about these days when it comes to artificial intelligence (AI).
Recently, an email from within tech giant Microsoft (MSFT -1.00%) may have confirmed investors' fears: AI spending has become excessive.
Image source: Getty Images.
Microsoft is reportedly putting limits on AI usage According to an email 404 Media has viewed, Microsoft is telling its employees to be more cautious about AI. "Tokenmaxxing is not what we are optimizing for," says the email from Jay Parikh, an executive vice president at the tech giant. Instead, the goal is to focus on outcomes and ensure that AI use is justifiable.
High spending on AI is a key reason investors have expressed concerns about tech stocks like Microsoft, fearing the investments won't pay off. While the AI growth story has enabled many stocks to rise, if it unravels, those who spent feverishly and aggressively may be among those who experience the most significant declines later on.
The company email within Microsoft, calling for more restrictive AI use, certainly suggests that tech leaders are aware that spending may have gotten out of control.
Today's Change
(
-1.00
%) $
-5.04
Current Price
$
501.02
Investors should tread carefully when it comes to tech stocks While AI has propelled many tech stocks to new heights, the risk for investors is that those valuations may only make sense if the opportunities in AI prove as plentiful as promised and profitable. If investments in AI prove wasteful, a big reckoning could be coming for companies that overspent. It may not be unlike what happened a few years ago when companies overestimated post-pandemic demand. They invested too heavily, layoffs followed, and stocks crashed.
The danger is that history could repeat itself, and highly valued tech stocks may fall sharply in value.
Microsoft, which has risen by just 5% this year, doesn't have as high a valuation as it did a year ago, and at 28 times earnings, it may be reasonably priced given how strong and solid its business is. But for other tech stocks, investors should be careful and pay close attention to their valuations, as buying at inflated levels could be risky.
, /PRNewswire/ -- The Gross Law Firm issues the following notice to shareholders of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT).
Shareholders who purchased shares of MSFT during the class period listed are encouraged to contact the firm regarding possible lead plaintiff appointment. Appointment as lead plaintiff is not required to partake in any recovery.
ALLEGATIONS: The complaint alleges that during the class period, Defendants issued materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (a) Microsoft's Copilot family of products had experienced significant brand positioning, user experience, usage, data siloing, computational capacity, organizational, and interoperability problems; (b) Microsoft's flagship proprietary AI model ranked well below competitors on a number of benchmark tests; (c) Microsoft needed to increase by billions of dollars its capital expenditures and divert GPU and CPU capacity away from fulfilling demand for its profitable Azure services in order to improve the competitive positioning of its critical Copilot family of products and increase its AI-related R&D; and (d) as a result of (a)-(c) above, Microsoft had failed to convert a significant percentage of its commercial Microsoft 365 users to paid Copilot subscriptions and the Company's Copilot offerings had lost market share to rival products, a trend that was increasing.
DEADLINE: August 11, 2026 Shareholders should not delay in registering for this class action. Register your information here: https://securitiesclasslaw.com/securities/microsoft-corporation-loss-submission-form/?id=199984&from=4
NEXT STEPS FOR SHAREHOLDERS: Once you register as a shareholder who purchased shares of MSFT during the timeframe listed above, you will be enrolled in a portfolio monitoring software to provide you with status updates throughout the lifecycle of the case. The deadline to seek to be a lead plaintiff is August 11, 2026. There is no cost or obligation to you to participate in this case.
WHY GROSS LAW FIRM? The Gross Law Firm is a nationally recognized class action law firm, and our mission is to protect the rights of all investors who have suffered as a result of deceit, fraud, and illegal business practices. The Gross Law Firm is committed to ensuring that companies adhere to responsible business practices and engage in good corporate citizenship. The firm seeks recovery on behalf of investors who incurred losses when false and/or misleading statements or the omission of material information by a company lead to artificial inflation of the company's stock. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
CONTACT:
The Gross Law Firm
15 West 38th Street, 12th floor
New York, NY, 10018
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (646) 453-8903The
Here at Zacks, we offer our members many different opportunities to take full advantage of the stock market, as well as how to invest in ways that lead to long-term success.
The Zacks Premium service makes this easier. It features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank; full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List; Equity Research reports; and Premium stock screens like the Earnings ESP filter. All of these can help you quickly identify what stocks to buy, what to sell, and what are today's hottest industries.
Also included in Zacks Premium is the Focus List. This is a long-term portfolio of top stocks that have all the traits to beat the market.
Breaking Down the Zacks Focus ListBuilding an investment portfolio from scratch can be difficult, so if you could, wouldn't you take a peek at a curated list of top stocks?
That's what the Zacks Focus List, a portfolio of 50 stocks, offers investors. Not only does it serve as a starting point for long-term investors, but all stocks included in the list are poised to outperform the market over the next 12 months.
One thing that makes the Focus List even more advantageous is that each pick comes with a full Zacks Analyst Report. This helps explain why each stock was selected and why we believe it's a good pick for the long-term.
The portfolio's past performance only solidifies why investors should consider it as a starting point. For 2020, the Focus List gained 13.85% on an annualized basis compared to the S&P 500's return of 9.38%. Cumulatively, the portfolio has returned 2,519.23% while the S&P returned 854.95%. Returns are for the period of February 1, 1996 to March 31, 2021.
Focus List MethodologyWhen stocks are picked for the Focus List, it reflects our enduring reliance on the power of earnings estimate revisions.
Earnings estimates are expectations of growth and profitability, and are determined by brokerage analysts. Together with company management, these analysts examine every aspect that may affect future earnings, like interest rates, the economy, and sector and industry optimism.
What a company will earn down the road also needs to be taken into consideration, and this is why earnings estimate revisions are so important.
Stocks that receive upward earnings estimate revisions are more likely to receive even more upward changes in the future. For example, if an analyst raised their estimates last month, they're more likely to do it again this month, and other analysts are likely to do the same.
Harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions is where the Zacks Rank comes in. The Zacks Rank is a unique, proprietary stock-rating model that utilizes changes to a company's quarterly earnings expectations to help investors build a winning portfolio.
The Zacks Rank consists of four main pillars: Agreement, Magnitude, Upside, and Surprise. Each one is given a raw score, which is recalculated every night and compiled into the Rank. Then, stocks are classified into five groups, ranging from "Strong Buy" to "Strong Sell," using this data.
The Focus List is comprised of stocks hand-picked from a long list of #1 (Strong Buy) or #2 (Buy) ranked companies, meaning that each new addition boasts a bullish earnings consensus among analysts.
It can be very profitable to buy stocks with rising earnings estimates, as stock prices respond to revisions. By adding Focus List stocks, there's a great chance you'll be getting into companies whose future earnings estimates will be raised, which can lead to price momentum.
Focus List Spotlight: Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) Redmond, WA-based Microsoft Corporation is one of the largest broad-based technology providers in the world. The company holds the leading position in the PC software market with its Windows operating system.
MSFT, a #3 (Hold) stock, was added to the Focus List on February 1, 2016 at $55.09 per share. Since then, shares have increased 818.61% to $506.06.
For fiscal 2027, 13 analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.31 to $19.58. MSFT boasts an average earnings surprise of 9.3%.
Additionally, MSFT's earnings are expected to grow 9.1% for the current fiscal year.
Reveal Winning StocksUnlock all of our powerful research, tools and analysis, including the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research Reports, Zacks Earnings ESP Filter, Premium Screener and more, as part of Zacks Premium. You'll quickly identify which stocks to buy, hold and sell, and target today's hottest industries, to help improve the performance of your portfolio. Gain full access now >>
Microsoft remains a Buy after a 31% rally, driven by accelerating Azure growth and robust commercial backlog. Microsoft's hyperscale infrastructure and AI investments create a nearly unassailable moat, with $115.9B capex supported by $182.9B operating cash flow. AI model commoditization strengthens Microsoft's position as an operating layer, with Foundry and Fabric anchoring enterprise demand and workflow integration.
Aristides Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 14.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,337 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 2,567 shares during the period. Microsoft accounts for 1.2% of Aristides Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Aristides Capital LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,528,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.
A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insiders Place Their Bets In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
More Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of brokerages recently commented on MSFT. Dbs Bank lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $559.16.
Read Our Latest Report on MSFT
Microsoft Stock Up 1.2% NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $553.72. The company has a market cap of $3.76 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $405.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $406.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.27%.
Microsoft Profile (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINECharles River Laboratories International (NYSE:CRL) CAO Michael Gunnar Knell Sells 6,645 Shares
August is a natural moment for investors to reflect on the remainder of the year. Summer is ending, and Wall Street is about to deploy sidelined funds for an end-of-year push. For long-term investors, stepping back to ask which businesses have already produced multi-decade compounding — and whether the moats that drove those returns are still intact today — is useful.
Past performance does not guarantee future returns. Durable competitive advantages, however, tend to persist, and the three names below have spent decades widening theirs. Here are three generational compounders that have made patient shareholders rich and that still look positioned to do it again.
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction) is the textbook example of a moat that keeps widening. The stock trades around $306.58 as of Aug. 10, with a market cap of roughly $4.47 trillion. Over the trailing 10 years, shares have gained 1,021% on an adjusted basis, and the stock is up 35% over the past year. Apple is also Warren Buffett’s largest equity position, sitting at about 22% of the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio per the Q2 2026 13F.
The bull case is the installed base and the recurring revenue that sits on top of it. In Q2 FY26, Apple reported EPS of $2.01 against a $1.94 estimate, on revenue of $111.18 billion, up 17% year over year. iPhone revenue jumped to $56.99 billion, Services hit $30.98 billion and the active device base now exceeds 2.5 billion. Management lifted the dividend 4% to 27 cents quarterly and authorized a fresh $100 billion buyback. Analyst consensus is 63% bullish, with an average target of $312.72.
The risk: valuation is full at 35x trailing earnings, and Apple remains exposed to global trade frictions and supply-chain concentration. A long-term holder is paying a premium for durability, and that premium is real.
Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) is the dividend-compounder benchmark. The shares trade around $86.60, up more than 25% year to date and over 97% over the past decade on an adjusted basis. Coca-Cola has been a core Berkshire holding since the late 1980s, and the company just extended its dividend streak to 63-plus consecutive years of annual increases, putting it firmly in Dividend King territory.
The recent fundamentals back up the moat story. In Q1 2026, Coca-Cola posted EPS of 86 cents against an 81-cent estimate on revenue of $12.47 billion, up 12% year over year. Organic revenue grew 10%, unit case volume rose 3% and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar volume climbed 13% across every geography. Operating margin expanded to 35% from 33%, and free cash flow surged to $1.76 billion. Management raised 2026 guidance to comparable EPS growth of 8% to 9% and free cash flow near $12.2 billion. The current quarterly dividend sits at $0.53, up from $0.51 in 2025.
The risk: a $960 million BODYARMOR trademark impairment last quarter, ongoing IRS tax litigation, and a roughly 4% revenue headwind from divestitures including the pending Coca-Cola Beverages Africa sale. None of those threaten the franchise; they do compress near-term reported growth.
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is the third leg of this stool, and arguably the most interesting today because it has bounced back nicely. Shares trade around $508.28, up 7.47% year to date after a challenging first half. The 10-year adjusted return is more than 782%. Microsoft has compounded enormously since the early 1990s on a split-adjusted basis, and the AI/cloud cycle reads like the next chapter rather than the end of one.
The numbers are doing the talking. In Q3 FY26, Microsoft reported EPS of $4.27 against a $4.07 estimate on revenue of $82.89 billion, up 18% year over year. Intelligent Cloud revenue grew 30% to $34.68 billion, Azure expanded 40%, and the AI business crossed a $37 billion annualized run rate, up 123% year over year. Commercial remaining performance obligations, essentially contracted backlog, hit $627 billion. CEO Satya Nadella framed it bluntly: “Our AI business surpassed an annual revenue run rate of $37 billion, up 123% year-over-year.” Analyst consensus is 95% bullish with a target of $561.39.
The risk: capital intensity. CapEx ran $30.88 billion in the quarter, up 84% year over year, and the market is openly debating whether AI infrastructure spending will earn an adequate return. That debate is the entire reason the stock is on sale.
What to watch from here The thread connecting Apple, Coca-Cola and Microsoft is a competitive position that survives recessions, technology shifts and management changes. The next decade will test each moat in different ways: Apple against trade and regulatory pressure, Coca-Cola against shifting consumer preferences, Microsoft against the return-on-AI-investment question. For long-term investors thinking past August, those are the right questions to be asking.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
At $506.06, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) is a Hold. Chasing the stock after a 31.41% one-month rip means paying up at the top of a short-term sentiment curve when a disciplined entry point is likely still ahead.
Microsoft is the world’s second-largest company by market value at roughly $3.71 trillion, anchored by Azure, Microsoft 365, and a widening AI stack that now includes its own MAI models. The most recent quarter was a blowout on almost every line that matters.
Fiscal Q4 revenue hit $90.007 billion, up 17.75%, with non-GAAP EPS of $4.74 beating consensus by 11.81%. The stock moved from $395.496 at filing to $506.06 in about two weeks.
The Bull Case: A Contracted Backlog That Keeps Compounding Commercial remaining performance obligations reached $678 billion, up 84% year over year, giving Microsoft years of contracted revenue visibility that few peers can match.
Azure grew 43% and crossed $100 billion in annual revenue for the first time. CFO Amy Hood guided Q1 FY2027 Azure growth to “approximately 45% in constant currency.” Microsoft 365 Copilot reached over 30 million paid seats, with net adds more than doubling quarter over quarter.
Wall Street reflects that momentum. Analysts carry a target of $563.35 with 14 Strong Buy and 40 Buy ratings against 3 Holds and zero Sells.
The Bear Case: Capex Is Eating the Cash Flow Q4 free cash flow fell 23.19% to $19.639 billion as capex jumped 109.63% to $35.802 billion. Hood signaled Q1 spending will be “over $50 billion.”
Valuation looks stretched. Shares trade at a P/E of 28 and a P/FCF of 56, and sit 2% below the 52-week high of $550.24. Insiders are net sellers across 35 recent transactions.
Reddit sentiment swung from bearish readings around AI “revenue circularity” concerns to 85 within days, a classic sentiment-extreme pattern.
The Hold Case: Great Business, Wrong Entry Point The business itself remains a strong long-term hold. Net income rose 31.33%, operating margin sits near 46.78%, and ROIC is 22.01%. This is a durable compounder.
The problem is timing. Polymarket assigns only a 31% probability that MSFT closes above $525 by end of August, with crowd expectations clustered in the $480–$510 range. Historical earnings data shows the average one-week reaction across six straight beats is 0%, meaning post-earnings consolidation is the norm.
Waiting for a pullback toward the recent base near $385, or for the next earnings-day dip, offers a cleaner risk profile than chasing a stock that has already run 22.9% in three months.
What the Numbers Say About the Setup Microsoft trades at $506.06 against a consensus target of $563.35, implying roughly 11% upside if that target is met. Coverage is deep at 57 analysts, and sentiment skews 95% bullish.
Shares are up 31.41% over the past month while the S&P 500 tracker rose 4.23% over roughly the same window. Year to date, MSFT is up 5.11%, and it is still down 2.28% over one year.
The Verdict: Own the Business, Time the Entry At $506.06, Microsoft is a Hold.
The fundamentals justify owning Microsoft. Azure just cleared $100 billion, RPO is up 84%, and Copilot has crossed 30 million paid seats. That is a Buy-worthy business.
The entry point is the problem. Buying after a 31.41% one-month move puts new capital in at the top of a sentiment spike, right as capex ramps toward “over $50 billion” next quarter and FCF is already down 23.19%. Prediction markets price only 31% odds of a close above $525 this month.
The trigger to upgrade is a pullback toward the mid-$400s, or a quarter where Azure growth accelerates while capex growth decelerates. The trigger to downgrade is any RPO or Azure deceleration paired with rising capex intensity. Until one of those prints, patience costs little and pays optionality.
Great company, wrong price, right time to wait.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Compound Planning Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 5.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 116,001 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 7,044 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for about 1.3% of Compound Planning Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest position. Compound Planning Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $42,940,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MSFT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Microsoft by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 717,942,580 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $347,211,391,000 after buying an additional 15,955,898 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in Microsoft by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 306,150,608 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $148,060,557,000 after acquiring an additional 6,388,930 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 182,618,400 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $88,056,019,000 after acquiring an additional 1,911,142 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Microsoft by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 121,220,561 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $58,624,690,000 after acquiring an additional 980,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,664,631,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Microsoft Stock Up 1.2% MSFT opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72. The company has a market cap of $3.76 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a 50 day moving average of $405.77 and a 200 day moving average of $406.95.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.65 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330 in the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MSFT shares. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $515.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Argus dropped their price target on Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $559.16.
Get Our Latest Report on Microsoft
Microsoft Profile (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Epoch Investment Partners Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 4.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 788,663 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 38,574 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 1.8% of Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $291,939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd 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 last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Microsoft Trading Up 1.2% Microsoft stock opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $349.20 and a 52-week high of $553.72. The company has a market cap of $3.76 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $405.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $406.95.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.65 EPS. Analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.27%.
Key Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Microsoft from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Arete Research lifted their price objective on Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. HSBC decreased their target price on Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $559.16.
View Our Latest Analysis on MSFT
Insiders Place Their Bets In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEiShares Russell 1000 ETF $IWB Shares Acquired by Financial Management Professionals Inc.
NEXT HEADLINE »Contravisory Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. $WBD
Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 47,402 shares of the software giant’s stock, valued at approximately $17,547,000. Microsoft makes up about 0.8% of Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position.
Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its position 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 during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Price Performance Shares of MSFT opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.76 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.18, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $553.72. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $405.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $406.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.27%.
More Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Insider Buying and Selling In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MSFT shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $545.00 to $512.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Microsoft from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $559.16.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Microsoft
About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEEverhart Financial Group Inc. Trims Stock Position in iShares National Muni Bond ETF $MUB
NEXT HEADLINE »Dimensional International Core Equity Market ETF $DFAI Stake Lifted by Financial Management Professionals Inc.
Cannell & Spears LLC lessened its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 12.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 656,452 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 90,734 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for 4.8% of Cannell & Spears LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Cannell & Spears LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $240,037,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Microsoft Trading Up 1.2% Shares of MSFT stock opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.76 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.18, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $405.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $406.95. Microsoft Corporation has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month high of $553.72.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.65 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.27%.
Analyst Ratings Changes A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. President Capital upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, DZ Bank reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $559.16.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on Microsoft
Microsoft News Roundup Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Insiders Place Their Bets In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEFocus Financial Network Inc. Raises Holdings in iShares MBS ETF $MBB
NEXT HEADLINE »First Bank & Trust Has $778,000 Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG
Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lowered its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 389,988 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 11,978 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises approximately 4.1% of Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $144,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Markel Group Inc. grew its holdings in Microsoft by 0.4% in the first quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 537,630 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $199,014,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,921,677 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,562,197,000 after purchasing an additional 537,634 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Securities Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth $2,616,000. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $6,041,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. grew its stake in Microsoft by 138.8% during the 1st quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,356,359 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $502,077,000 after buying an additional 788,297 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes A number of equities research analysts have commented on MSFT shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $540.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $545.00 to $512.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $559.16.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on MSFT
Insider Buying and Selling In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,922,874.02. This represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 38,572 shares of company stock valued at $17,775,330 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Key Stories Impacting Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Microsoft Stock Up 1.2% Shares of MSFT stock opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $553.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.76 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $405.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $406.95.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 earnings per share for the current year.
Microsoft Dividend Announcement The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.
Microsoft Profile (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINEFocus Financial Network Inc. Sells 15,084 Shares of SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Value ETF $SPYV
NEXT HEADLINE »First Heartland Consultants Inc. Sells 13,262 Shares of FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF – September $GSEP
Brooklands Fund Management Ltd cut its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 46.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,899 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 2,519 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises about 1.2% of Brooklands Fund Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Brooklands Fund Management Ltd’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $1,073,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Klingman & Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 37,161 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $13,756,000 after purchasing an additional 1,404 shares in the last quarter. Keebeck Wealth Management raised its stake in Microsoft by 5.1% in the first quarter. Keebeck Wealth Management now owns 46,839 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $17,338,000 after buying an additional 2,290 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 64.3% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 24,264,779 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $8,982,083,000 after buying an additional 9,493,778 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 597.1% in the first quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 1,294,540 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $479,200,000 after buying an additional 1,108,843 shares during the period. Finally, Siren L.L.C. boosted its position in Microsoft by 175.9% during the 1st quarter. Siren L.L.C. now owns 41,380 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $15,318,000 after acquiring an additional 26,380 shares in the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Microsoft Stock Up 1.2% Microsoft stock opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.76 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.18, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $405.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $406.95. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.Microsoft’s revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was 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 $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $510.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Phillip Securities lowered Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $680.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $559.16.
Read Our Latest Report on MSFT
Key Stories Impacting Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)
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).
Featured Stories Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
Bridgewater Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 2.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 68,351 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,512 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 1.7% of Bridgewater Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Bridgewater Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $27,696,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.
Insider Activity at Microsoft In other Microsoft news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 38,572 shares of company stock worth $17,775,330 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Microsoft Trading Up 1.2% NASDAQ:MSFT opened at $506.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.76 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $405.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $406.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $553.72.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.
Microsoft Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.27%.
Analyst Ratings Changes Several research firms recently commented on MSFT. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $559.16.
Get Our Latest Research Report on Microsoft
Key Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:
Positive Sentiment: Maia 300 chip plans support the rally: Reports say Microsoft could unveil its Maia 300 AI accelerator as early as September and secure capacity for more than 300,000 chips by 2027, with longer-term ambitions exceeding one million units. The effort could reduce Microsoft’s dependence on Nvidia, lower AI-computing costs and potentially attract customers such as Anthropic. Microsoft plans to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall Positive Sentiment: Analysts see measured AI investment and further upside: Bernstein raised its Microsoft price target from $647 to $660, arguing that the company is not building data-center capacity too aggressively. The firm said new infrastructure would remain useful for Azure even if AI demand moderated. Microsoft’s Datacenter Spending Is Disciplined Positive Sentiment: Cloud growth and backlog underpin investor confidence: JPMorgan cited Microsoft’s Azure expansion, substantial backlog and improving AI monetization while supporting higher market-wide earnings forecasts. Other bullish commentary points to strong recent results, including reported Azure growth and broad Copilot adoption. Microsoft Stock Rises as JPMorgan Backs AI Payoff Positive Sentiment: Capital returns add support: Microsoft’s large-scale dividends and share repurchases reinforce its position as a cash-generating technology leader, although investors are also evaluating how much capital is being redirected toward AI infrastructure. Microsoft Stock Runs One of the Market’s Biggest Cash-Return Machines Neutral Sentiment: AI opportunity comes with execution risks: Analysts continue debating whether megacap AI spending will generate adequate cash flow. Separately, reports of AI models reaching real-world systems could increase scrutiny of Microsoft’s autonomous-agent products and enterprise security controls. Negative Sentiment: Legal notices remain an overhang: Investor-rights firms are promoting a securities class action involving purchases made between May 1, 2025, and January 28, 2026, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The notices do not establish liability but could add reputational and litigation risk. About Microsoft (Free Report)
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).
Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft SoundHound AI Sends a Loud Signal After Its Q2 Earnings Beat 3 Dividend Champion Utilities for a Market That Can’t Sit Still These 3 Most-Upgraded Stocks Have Almost Nothing to Do With AI First Solar’s Profit Engine Faces a New Policy Test in Washington Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Microsoft Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Microsoft and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
« PREVIOUS HEADLINETop Restaurant Stocks Worth Watching – August 9th
NEXT HEADLINE »Best Construction Stocks To Consider – August 9th
In the cloud computing arena, three companies dominate: Amazon (AMZN +1.31%), Microsoft (MSFT +1.21%), and Alphabet (GOOG +0.67%) (GOOGL +0.91%). All three of these have thriving cloud computing businesses, and each recently reported results for its latest quarter.
Although the market may have declared a handful of winners, I have a different line of thinking on these three. I think there are two clear winners and one loser in this trio, and the loser may seem odd to pinpoint, considering the stock's performance following earnings.
So, where do these three fall? Let's find out.
Image source: Getty Images.
Cloud computing will be a major long-term winner of AI One of the biggest questions the market is wrestling with right now is which companies will be the major winners of the artificial intelligence (AI) build-out. In my mind, the cloud computing companies will likely be the ultimate winners. Although they are spending hundreds of billions of dollars on computing capacity right now, all of that and then some will be earned back via cloud computing.
The idea is simple: A company builds excess computing capacity, then rents it out to clients for a profit. All three of these companies have major AI players as clients, and every time they train a new model or someone runs an inquiry in their systems, the cloud computing companies get paid. That business will never go away, making it a great investment for the long term. Right now, these three are rapidly building out their computing capacity to grab as much market share as possible, as this will be their rental base when AI infrastructure is more mature.
Today's Change
(
1.31
%) $
3.61
Current Price
$
278.09
Looking at each company's second-quarter results (fiscal fourth quarter for Microsoft) revealed strength across the board. Amazon Web Services (AWS) grew the slowest of the three, rising at a 37% pace. Microsoft Azure was next at 43% growth. Leading the way was Google Cloud, rising 82% year over year.
From just those figures, it would be easy to declare Amazon the loser, as it's in last place just from its growth rate. However, I don't think that's the right call.
What's undisputed is that Google Cloud is crushing it and seeing huge growth right now. It is experiencing an enormous influx of computing demand, largely stemming from its custom AI chips, which can deliver cheaper computing costs versus AI training using graphics processing units (GPUs).
Today's Change
(
0.91
%) $
3.22
Current Price
$
357.52
But who is the other winner? I'd argue it's Amazon.
Although Amazon may have grown slow than Microsoft, it's picking up major momentum. In the first quarter, AWS' growth rate was 28%. That's major acceleration, especially considering that AWS is the largest of the three cloud computing companies. Azure's revenue rose 40% during the third quarter, so the 43% Q4 growth really didn't build on Q3's results. If this pattern continues, Amazon could easily surpass Microsoft's growth rate in the following quarters, making it the more obvious winner.
Because Microsoft's growth rate barely accelerated, I'm a bit skeptical of the health of its cloud business, as its growth should be rapidly accelerating, not barely picking up. Still, that didn't stop the market from loving its quarter.
The market prefers Microsoft stock Heading into earnings, Microsoft stock was beaten down, but it was quickly bought up following the quarterly results.
AMZN data by YCharts. PE = price-to-earnings.
That still doesn't sway my opinion on which stock had the best results. When you look at valuation heading into earnings, it was clear Microsoft was undervalued, and I think this explains why it had the best reaction after the earnings announcements.
AMZN Operating PE Ratio data by YCharts.
I still think Amazon and Alphabet had the best quarters, but Microsoft could easily join them if it reports rapid cloud growth next quarter. We'll see what happens in three months, but if this pattern persists, Alphabet and Amazon are far better buys than Microsoft for the long term.
Mark Zuckerberg is on track to spend as much as $145 billion on AI infrastructure this year, a figure that would have looked absurd just two years ago. It is now merely his share of an industry outlay approaching $800 billion across the biggest U.S. tech names. Yet in a CNBC segment on August 10, 2026, Barclays Senior U.S. Economist Jonathan Millar delivered a sobering counterpoint: all that capital has not yet shown up as measurable productivity gains in the broader economy.
Millar’s framing is straightforward. “Spending on capex is not the same thing as productivity. And there’s a lot that comes in, in between in that process of actually making that new capital productive.” He argues that translating hardware and models into economic output requires organizational change, worker reskilling, and industry-wide restructuring, none of which happens on a quarterly cadence.
The 1980s Parallel Millar reached back four decades for a template. “Typically it plays out over the course of years. So if you remember the experience from the IT boom, we had computers, say in the 1980s, we were seeing lots of imprints from IT on the stock market, on investment and so forth. But it really wasn’t affecting productivity. And it took more than a decade for that to really show up in the numbers.”
The BEA data backs this up in real time. The Information sector grew just 1.5% in Q1 2026, decelerating from 2.5% in Q4 2025. Millar added that “industries adopting AI more rapidly do not appear to be experiencing faster growth.” Adoption surveys show breadth climbing steadily, but sustained daily productive use lags well behind.
Meta: The $145 Billion Bet Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META | META Price Prediction) narrowed its full-year 2026 capex range to $130 billion to $145 billion. The strain is visible. Q2 free cash flow collapsed to $784 million, a -91.31% year-over-year decline, while long-term debt climbed to $83.66 billion. EPS of $6.18 missed the $7.2173 consensus, snapping a six-quarter beat streak, per the company’s Q2 8-K. Shares are down 9.72% year to date.
Amazon: $220 Billion and Still Short of Capacity Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) is guiding to roughly $220 billion in cash capex. CEO Andy Jassy said “even at that amount, we will still not have enough capacity to meet all the demand we have in 2026.” AWS grew 36.7% in Q2, and the AI and chips businesses each cleared a $25 billion run rate. Shares are up 20.48% YTD.
Alphabet: $205 Billion and Supply Constrained Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) raised its 2026 capex range to $195 billion to $205 billion. Google Cloud revenue grew 82% in Q2 with backlog reaching $514 billion. CEO Sundar Pichai conceded the enterprise story is early: “Now think about what percentage of workloads are really AI-native and AI-enabled. It again feels like very, very early.” Shares are up 14.37% YTD.
Microsoft: $175 Billion With FCF Intact Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is set to spend around $175 billion. Azure crossed $100 billion in annual revenue for the first time, and Microsoft 365 Copilot passed 30 million paid seats. Commercial RPO stands at $625 billion. Shares are up 5.11% YTD.
What Investors Should Watch Millar’s argument resets the timeline for AI’s payoff. If the 1980s pattern holds, the productivity payoff from today’s $800 billion in annual capex may not surface in national statistics until organizations finish rewiring workflows and workforces. The bull case for these four names depends on execution reaching customers faster than debt costs and depreciation schedules bite. For now, Meta’s collapsing free cash flow is the sharpest reminder that the bill is arriving before the productivity is.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Bernstein raised its Microsoft (MSFT) price target to $660 from $647 and kept an Outperform rating. The note pushed back on a worry hanging over the megacap clo
