Microsoft’s (MSFT) Outperform Rating Reiterated at Wedbush

Wedbush reissued their outperform rating on shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) in a research note published on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $625.00 target price on the software giant’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on MSFT. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on Microsoft from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut their price objective on Microsoft from $640.00 to $630.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $675.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Microsoft from $650.00 to $625.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Microsoft from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $631.03.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT stock opened at $487.61 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The company has a market capitalization of $3.62 trillion, a PE ratio of 34.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $498.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $503.42. Microsoft has a 12 month low of $344.79 and a 12 month high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The software giant reported $4.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.65 by $0.48. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.71% and a return on equity of 32.45%. The business had revenue of $77.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Microsoft will post 13.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 25.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total transaction of $1,364,352.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 55,782 shares in the company, valued at $26,703,959.04. This represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bradford L. Smith sold 38,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $518.64, for a total transaction of $19,967,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 461,597 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $239,402,668.08. This represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 54,100 shares of company stock valued at $27,598,872 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Microsoft

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 705,077,786 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $350,712,742,000 after purchasing an additional 13,691,572 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 299,196,519 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $148,823,341,000 after buying an additional 3,166,275 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 179,001,751 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $88,714,256,000 after acquiring an additional 3,532,054 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,493,678,000. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 564,387.1% in the 2nd quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 90,549,369 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $45,040,162,000 after acquiring an additional 90,533,328 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush’s Dan Ives labels Microsoft a “compelling” buy for 2026 and sets a $625 target, arguing MSFT is an overlooked AI winner with ~30% upside — a catalyst for buyer interest. This Dividend-Yielding Tech Stock Looks a ‘Compelling Buy’ for 2026 After 2 Years of Underperformance
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple firms (Evercore, Wedbush, others) reiterated Outperform/Overweight ratings and high price targets (median ~$639), supporting upside expectations and fresh buying by institutions. Microsoft, Salesforce Lead Evercore’s 2026 Picks
• Positive Sentiment: Social and data-driven commentary highlights continued AI and Azure strength (Azure growth cited >30% YoY) and investor excitement around Copilot/AI infrastructure demand — a core growth narrative. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on AI and Cloud Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: OpenAI appears closer to showing ads on ChatGPT — could create a new monetization stream that indirectly benefits Microsoft, but timing/terms and competitive/regulatory implications remain uncertain. OpenAI Is Getting Closer to Showing Ads on ChatGPT
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro view: strategists expect a solid 2026 for stocks but warn of rising volatility — a backdrop that can amplify MSFT moves in either direction. Wall Street Expects a Solid 2026 for Stocks. But the ‘Risks Are Growing’
• Negative Sentiment: Notable insider selling (including several executive sales) and reports of heavy insider dispositions can dent investor confidence about timing/valuation. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Opinions on AI and Cloud Growth
• Negative Sentiment: CapEx and “overbuilding” risk: coverage highlights very large AI/data-center investments (reported multibillion-dollar capex) which could pressure margins if AI monetization lags. Microsoft: Not Immune To The Risk Of Overbuilding
• Negative Sentiment: Product/adoption concerns: reports say Copilot adoption has been slower than hoped, prompting CEO Satya Nadella to take a more hands‑on product role — a short‑term execution risk. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella steps up as AI product overseer amid Copilot adoption challenges: report
• Negative Sentiment: Policy/talent risk: the administration’s H‑1B overhaul (ending the pure lottery) could change talent sourcing/costs for big tech, a medium‑term headwind for staffing/AI hiring. Trump administration moves to overhaul how H-1B visas are granted, ending lottery system

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).