Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday morning.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on MSFT. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $682.00 to $690.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Baird R W upgraded shares of Microsoft to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $650.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, DZ Bank reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $631.03.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of Microsoft stock opened at $485.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.61 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $499.20 and its 200 day moving average is $503.42. Microsoft has a one year low of $344.79 and a one year high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.65 by $0.48. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 35.71%.The business had revenue of $77.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.30 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Microsoft will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft

In related news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 12,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.52, for a total value of $6,266,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,577,620.48. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total value of $19,967,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 461,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $239,402,668.08. This represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 54,100 shares of company stock worth $27,598,872 over the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in Microsoft by 51.3% during 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. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Westend Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 386.7% in the second quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street bullishness on AI upside — Wedbush/Dan Ives reiterating Outperform and a $625 price target implies material upside for MSFT if AI monetization accelerates into 2026. Microsoft Stock Has 29% Upside in 2026, Says Dan Ives
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts forecasting a large incremental AI revenue stream — one top analyst scenario models roughly $25B of AI-driven revenue in fiscal 2026, supporting claims that MSFT may be undervalued on current multiples. Microsoft (MSFT) Stock: Top Analyst Forecasts $25B AI Revenue Boost
• Positive Sentiment: Product and partnership momentum — new partnerships, a cybercrime platform rollout and multi-year deals (e.g., with Cognizant) expand commercial channels for Copilot/Azure services. These deals support revenue visibility even as investment ramps. Microsoft Expands AI Footprint
• Positive Sentiment: Large AI-capex commitments — Microsoft is funneling sizable capital into AI (including major investments in India and Canada), which supports long-term cloud/AI leadership despite short-term spending. Heavy AI Investment Positions Microsoft
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention and favorable long-term narratives (dividend-growth narrative, Zacks/Fool coverage) keep MSFT in buy-lists even as short-term volatility persists. Why Microsoft Is a Top Growth Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Gaming struggles — coverage noting Xbox is “losing the console race by miles” highlights declining hardware sales, layoffs and studio cuts that pressure Xbox profitability and near-term investor sentiment. Losing the Console Race by Miles
• Negative Sentiment: Execution and governance concerns — reports that Satya Nadella is pressing teams on Copilot progress (and commentary about micromanagement) suggest internal stress over execution timelines. Microsoft CEO Pushes Staff on Copilot Ambitions
• Negative Sentiment: Concerns about OpenAI exposure and required spending — some analysts/columns argue OpenAI ties could be a liability and commentators warn Microsoft “requires mass spending” to keep Azure competitive, both of which can pressure margins and near-term sentiment. OpenAI Is Looking More Like A Liability Jim Cramer Says Microsoft “Requires Mass Spending”

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).