Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-seven brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and forty-two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $564.2667.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MSFT. 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. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Microsoft from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Evercore set a $528.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $502.00 to $522.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. The trade was 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 the 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 101,335 shares of company stock worth $50,655,795. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 4.9% during the third quarter. Shepherd Kaplan Krochuk LLC now owns 431 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 0.6% in the second quarter. Better Money Decisions LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,740,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Endowment Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% in the third quarter. Endowment Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,251 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,720,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pollock Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 0.8% during the third quarter. Pollock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,805 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,453,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Microsoft stock opened at $495.63 on Friday. Microsoft has a twelve month low of $349.20 and a twelve month 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 company has a market capitalization of $3.68 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.60, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $455.85 and its 200 day moving average is $419.16.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 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 analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.65 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Microsoft will post 19.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft reportedly plans to more than triple global data-center capacity to approximately 38 gigawatts by 2032. The expansion is intended to address server shortages that have forced Microsoft to turn away some AI and cloud customers, potentially allowing the company to capture more Azure demand and prevent business from shifting to rivals. Microsoft plans 38 gigawatts of data center capacity by 2032
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive on Microsoft’s AI and cloud growth. Recent commentary cites Azure revenue growth of 43%, expectations for further acceleration, and approximately 30 million paid Copilot seats—supporting the view that AI products are becoming meaningful enterprise businesses. Microsoft: Big Tech Winner Still On Sale
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street price targets are moving higher, with a Yahoo Finance analyst survey cited at $572.92. Microsoft is also expanding Azure’s commercial ecosystem through partnerships such as Talkdesk’s Azure Marketplace integration, which could increase cloud consumption and simplify enterprise adoption. Microsoft Price Targets Are Rising
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft is reorganizing its reporting structure and plans to disclose quarterly Azure revenue beginning in fiscal 2027. Greater transparency may help investors assess cloud performance, but the reporting change itself does not alter fundamentals. Microsoft’s Azure Reporting Shift Adds Clarity
• Neutral Sentiment: Longtime communications chief Frank Shaw is leaving after nearly three decades, a senior leadership transition that may attract attention but is not currently tied to a change in strategy. Frank Shaw leaving Microsoft
• Negative Sentiment: The data-center buildout will require very large capital expenditures, raising concerns about power availability, construction costs, free cash flow and returns on investment. The company’s recent capacity constraints also highlight execution risk. Microsoft’s AI Crunch Forced It to Turn Away Business
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also weighing competition from Alphabet and other cloud providers, alongside security and productivity risks from bring-your-own-device users and concerns that Microsoft’s valuation already reflects substantial AI growth.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital solutions for consumers, businesses and public-sector organizations. Its products and services include the Windows operating system, Microsoft 365 productivity applications, Teams collaboration software, Dynamics business applications and Azure cloud computing services.

The company also operates LinkedIn, GitHub and Xbox, which includes gaming consoles, video games and related online services.