Microsoft FY2027 EPS Forecast Increased by Erste Group Bank

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) – Investment analysts at Erste Group Bank boosted their FY2027 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Microsoft in a report released on Monday, July 27th. Erste Group Bank analyst H. Engel now anticipates that the software giant will post earnings per share of $19.46 for the year, up from their prior forecast of $19.40. The consensus estimate for Microsoft’s current full-year earnings is $16.70 per share.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly 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 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.65 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on MSFT. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $647.00 price objective on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $550.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their target price on Microsoft from $595.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $555.76.

Microsoft Price Performance

MSFT stock opened at $390.54 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.90 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $396.43 and its 200 day moving average is $405.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.28. Microsoft has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $555.45.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is currently 21.67%.

Insider Activity at Microsoft

In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction 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 represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total value of $519,111.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 23,762 shares of company stock valued at $10,508,361. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Platform Technology Partners lifted its position in shares of Microsoft by 7.4% during the second quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 45,761 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $17,070,000 after purchasing an additional 3,167 shares during the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 5.2% in the second quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 35,154 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $13,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares during the last quarter. MBE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 6.5% in the second quarter. MBE Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,600 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,343,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. SWP Financial LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 33.4% in the 2nd quarter. SWP Financial LLC now owns 1,030 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Advisory Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Microsoft by 20.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 23,516 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $8,772,000 after buying an additional 3,994 shares in 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: Strong earnings and cloud growth: Microsoft reported quarterly revenue of approximately $90.0 billion, up 17.7% year over year and above the $87.6 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted earnings per share of $4.74 also exceeded expectations of roughly $4.24. Azure revenue rose 43%, ahead of forecasts, and Azure surpassed $100 billion in annual revenue. Microsoft tops quarterly cloud growth estimates
• Positive Sentiment: AI monetization is gaining traction: Microsoft said Copilot exceeded 30 million paid seats, while growing Azure and Microsoft 365 usage suggested that AI demand is translating into higher cloud consumption and subscription revenue. Management also highlighted expanding AI capacity and a large commercial backlog. Meta tanks, Microsoft jumps as the AI trade splits Big Tech
• Positive Sentiment: Capital-spending concerns eased: Microsoft kept its AI capital-expenditure outlook broadly unchanged, unlike Alphabet’s recent upward revision, and emphasized that GPU spending can be moderated if demand cools. The company is also extending data-center lifespans to reduce buildout costs. Goldman Sachs raised its Microsoft price target to $640, while Citizens JMP reiterated its Market Outperform rating. Microsoft keeps capex forecast unchanged
• Neutral Sentiment: Key issue remains AI returns: Microsoft continues to spend heavily on data centers and AI infrastructure, so investors will monitor margins, free cash flow and the pace at which Copilot converts users into profitable consumption. The company’s first-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $89.9 billion to $91.0 billion was slightly above consensus. Microsoft beats Wall Street expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and competitive risks persist: U.K. regulators are investigating Microsoft’s Microsoft 365 subscription marketing, while Disney reportedly plans to replace GitHub Copilot with OpenAI’s Codex. These developments are unlikely to outweigh the earnings strength today but could pressure monetization and reputation over time. UK investigates Microsoft over 365 subscriptions

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).