Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Shares Up 1.1% – Still a Buy?

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares rose 1.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $400.63 and last traded at $399.95. Approximately 27,587,337 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 25% from the average daily volume of 36,659,281 shares. The stock had previously closed at $395.55.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft launched or joined new anti-scam initiatives and coalitions that can strengthen user trust across services and reduce fraud-related friction — a modest catalyst for consumer and enterprise reputation around Microsoft’s identity/security and cloud offerings. Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Tips Up With New Scam-Fighting Coalition
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and strategists are calling the pullback a buying opportunity and flagging MSFT as undervalued, which can attract bargain hunters and support near-term buying. Positive commentary includes buy/“sale” narratives and bullish takes on Microsoft’s long-term AI positioning. Microsoft is ‘long-term winner’ in AI arms race—sell-off is buying ‘opportunity,’ says Don Nesbitt
• Positive Sentiment: Monetization of AI (Copilot/GitHub Copilot and new ~$99 AI subscription talk) is highlighted as a recurring-revenue growth engine — investors view faster Copilot adoption and subscription rollouts as direct upside to revenue and margins. Will a New $99 AI Subscription Move the Needle for Microsoft Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Microsoft vs. Alphabet and other software giants stresses Microsoft’s entrenched enterprise footprint and nuance in AI competition — useful for longer-term positioning but not an immediate price driver. Microsoft (MSFT) vs Alphabet (GOOGL): Which Tech Giant Wins the AI Battle?
• Neutral Sentiment: Big-tech purchases of carbon credits (with Microsoft leading) signal ESG commitments but also rising operating/capital considerations as data-center energy needs grow — reputational plus, potential cost pressure. Big Tech purchases of carbon credits explode amid AI race, with Microsoft leading the way
• Negative Sentiment: Analyses flag massive off‑balance-sheet data center lease commitments across hyperscalers (Microsoft among the leaders). If revenue growth from AI workloads lags, these obligations could pressure margins and investor sentiment. Data Center Leases: Is Spending Mindful Of Revenues?
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish headlines and investor moves add caution: a Seeking Alpha piece highlights competition/geopolitical concentration risks and a downgrade narrative, and reports show large investors (e.g., Peter Thiel’s fund) trimmed MSFT — both can amplify volatility during pullbacks. Microsoft: Macrohard, Competition, And War-Related Fears (Rating Downgrade) Peter Thiel Sells 3 AI Stocks

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. New Street Research increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $670.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $650.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $591.95.

Microsoft Trading Up 1.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $2.97 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.39. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $427.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $475.81.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The software giant reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $80.28 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.04% and a return on equity of 32.34%. Microsoft’s revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.23 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 21st. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 22.76%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, Director John W. Stanton acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 83,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $5,045,695.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 137,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,486,322.16. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 15,955,898 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 6,388,930 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.1% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,911,142 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted 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 worth $58,624,690,000 after purchasing an additional 980,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at $50,664,631,000. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).