Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Price Target Raised to $610.00

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) had its target price raised by Barclays from $600.00 to $610.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the software giant’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on Microsoft in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $650.00 price objective (up from $610.00) on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Microsoft from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $440.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, September 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Microsoft presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $609.54.

Microsoft Stock Performance

MSFT stock opened at $521.91 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.88 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $512.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $438.43. Microsoft has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $551.15.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.72 by $0.17. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.28% and a net margin of 41.17%. The company had revenue of $92.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Microsoft will post 19.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 19.00%.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Amy Hood sold 7,305 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $545.42, for a total value of $3,984,293.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 555,396 shares in the company, valued at $302,924,086.32. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, 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 value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp grew its position in Microsoft by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 315,653,206 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $117,744,959,000 after purchasing an additional 8,944,917 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,338,370,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 64,375,360 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $24,013,297,000 after buying an additional 543,172 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $18,306,443,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Microsoft by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 46,694,778 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $17,418,076,000 after buying an additional 5,019,702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft delivered a strong fiscal first quarter, with revenue of $92.28 billion and EPS of $4.89, both above expectations. Azure revenue surged 48%, while Microsoft Cloud revenue rose 30%, reinforcing the view that AI demand is translating into meaningful cloud growth. Microsoft Earnings Expose a Growing Divide in the Magnificent 7 AI Trade
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued second-quarter revenue guidance of $96.0 billion to $97.1 billion, above the $95.7 billion consensus estimate. Analysts responded with multiple price-target increases, including targets of $630 to $680, and Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to “strong buy.”
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong cash generation and diversified enterprise business continue to distinguish it from rivals facing sharper cash-flow concerns. Analysts argue that Azure, Copilot, AI agents and Microsoft’s security products provide several ways to monetize AI. The expanded Estée Lauder partnership, which will extend Copilot to more than 14,000 employees, offers another example of enterprise adoption. Estée Lauder and Microsoft Strategic Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s voluntary exit offer for approximately 60,000 employees may improve productivity and redirect resources toward AI, but it also highlights a significant restructuring as the company shifts toward more automated, equipment-intensive operations. Microsoft’s 60,000-Person Buyout Offer
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Microsoft’s capital intensity. The company plans roughly $170 billion of AI-related capital spending, while also arranging a $25 billion bond sale—the first major U.S. debt offering since 2017—to fund its buildout. Rising borrowing costs increase scrutiny of future AI returns. Microsoft Plans to Raise $25 Billion in Debt
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly capital spending was below analyst expectations because third-party AI-chip and data-center capacity was delayed, pushing some capacity into the first half of 2027. While management described this as a supply issue rather than weaker demand, the miss hurt AI infrastructure suppliers and revived concerns about the pace of expansion.
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft’s cloud gross margin is reportedly narrowing as chip, power, data-center and labor costs rise. With the Nasdaq 100 down sharply during October amid fears of an AI spending bubble, investors are demanding proof that Microsoft’s large backlog will convert into profitable cash flow—not merely future revenue.

Microsoft Company Profile

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company’s principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.