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

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s share price shot up 1.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $499.44 and last traded at $492.81. 49,637,589 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 30% from the average session volume of 38,058,672 shares. The stock had previously closed at $487.65.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure and AI demand remain the primary catalysts. Microsoft reported fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $90.01 billion and EPS of $4.74, exceeding estimates. Azure revenue rose 43%, and annual Azure sales surpassed $100 billion, suggesting that AI infrastructure investments are beginning to generate substantial returns. Microsoft Azure Fiscal 2026 Sales Exceed $100B
• Positive Sentiment: International cloud expansion supports longer-term growth. Microsoft opened its largest India data-center hub in Hyderabad and signed early customers including Adani Group and HDFC Bank. The company has committed roughly $20.5 billion to expanding its Indian operations, targeting the country’s growing AI and cloud market. Microsoft opens its largest India data center hub
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street remains broadly constructive. Citi raised its forecast after the Azure sales acceleration, while Tigress Financial lifted its price target to $690. Recent reports also highlight strong adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot, which has surpassed 30 million paid users. Citi raises Microsoft stock forecast
• Neutral Sentiment: OpenAI is a major growth driver but also a concentration risk. Reports suggest OpenAI may account for approximately 70% of Microsoft’s AI revenue. The relationship strengthens near-term monetization, but dependence on one partner and model provider could increase execution and competitive risks. OpenAI may account for 70% of Microsoft’s AI revenue
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending is pressuring margins and valuation. Analysts note that Microsoft’s exceptional profitability could face pressure from data-center construction, leases and other infrastructure commitments. After a sharp post-earnings rally, investors may demand continued growth to justify the stock’s elevated multiple.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and legal headlines provide counterweights. EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares for approximately $2.4 million, reducing his direct holdings by about 10%. Separately, several law firms publicized a securities-fraud class action alleging misleading AI-related statements, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. Microsoft EVP sells shares

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MSFT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $575.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Arete Research increased their target price on Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price 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. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. 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, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $558.87.

Microsoft Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $402.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $406.03. The firm has a market cap of $3.71 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 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) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is 20.27%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In related news, 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of Microsoft 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,572 shares of company stock valued at $12,896,430. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dodds Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 5.6% in the second quarter. Dodds Wealth LLC now owns 1,899 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $708,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 173.7% in the 2nd quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC now owns 288,945 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $107,782,000 after acquiring an additional 183,360 shares during the last quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. lifted its stake in Microsoft by 10.2% during the second quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 34,011 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $12,687,000 after purchasing an additional 3,135 shares during the last quarter. Sandro Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Microsoft by 4.0% in the second quarter. Sandro Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,438 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,132,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PTM Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 57.7% in the second quarter. PTM Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $988,000 after purchasing an additional 947 shares during the last quarter. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).