Analysts Set Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Target Price at $559.16

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-seven research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and forty-two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $560.2667.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MSFT. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their target price on Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Evercore set a $528.00 target price on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays cut their price target on Microsoft from $545.00 to $512.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on Microsoft from $515.00 to $490.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure and Copilot momentum remain the primary catalysts. Azure reportedly surpassed $100 billion in annual revenue, while Microsoft 365 Copilot exceeded 30 million paid seats. Those milestones reinforce the view that Microsoft is beginning to monetize its AI investments at scale. Price Prediction: One Number Could Decide How High Microsoft Goes in 2027
• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results continue to support the bull case. Microsoft’s latest report showed earnings per share of $4.74 versus a $4.24 consensus estimate and revenue of $90.01 billion, up 17.7% year over year. Cloud computing and AI helped drive roughly 30% profit growth. These Telltale Signs Cue Microsoft Investors Despite Earnings Surge
• Positive Sentiment: Enterprise adoption and partnerships are broadening demand. Swiss companies are increasing their use of Microsoft’s AI and cloud products, with governance and data sovereignty controls supporting adoption. S&P Global also expanded its integration of AI-ready data into Microsoft 365 Copilot workflows. Swiss Enterprises Prioritize Microsoft AI Governance
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and institutional sentiment remains constructive. William Blair reaffirmed a Buy rating, citing early AI monetization, while Altarock Partners increased its Microsoft position. Microsoft Buy Rating Reaffirmed

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219 over the last quarter. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its position 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Frankly Finances LLC acquired a new position in Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $37,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $481.63 on Wednesday. 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 has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $414.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $408.06. The stock has a market cap of $3.58 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.82, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.10.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last posted 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 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 the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.65 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Microsoft will post 19.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 20.27%.

Microsoft Company Profile

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

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