Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.28 EPS

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The software giant reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.28, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $81.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.28 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 35.71%.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.2%

MSFT stock traded up $1.05 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $481.63. The stock had a trading volume of 32,852,863 shares, compared to its average volume of 27,221,836. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $477.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $500.81. The company has a market capitalization of $3.58 trillion, a P/E ratio of 34.26, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.07. Microsoft has a 1-year low of $344.79 and a 1-year high of $555.45.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 25.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, November 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $450.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Redburn Partners set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $612.58.

Insider Transactions at Microsoft

In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 2,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.72, for a total value of $1,364,352.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,703,959.04. The trade was a 4.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 directly owned 129,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,577,620.48. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 54,100 shares of company stock valued at $27,598,872. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. University of Illinois Foundation acquired a new position in Microsoft in the second quarter worth about $50,000. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 155.7% in the first quarter. ROSS JOHNSON & Associates LLC now owns 156 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HFM Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the first quarter valued at approximately $73,000. 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: Maia 200 AI accelerator launch — management rolled out a custom Maia 200 chip aimed at cutting inference costs and energy use, which could improve Azure/Copilot gross margins over time. This product milestone supports the long?term AI profitability thesis. As Microsoft Launches Its New Maia 200 AI Accelerator
• Positive Sentiment: Big data?center approval — local regulators approved plans for 15 additional data centers in Wisconsin, supporting Azure capacity expansion and future revenue for cloud/AI workloads. That reduces a near?term supply constraint risk. Microsoft wins approval for 15 data centers at Wisconsin Foxconn site
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade/upside — BNP Paribas Exane raised its MSFT price target materially, signaling continued buy?side conviction around Microsoft’s AI/cloud trajectory. This can support demand in the stock if earnings reassure. BNP Paribas Exane adjusts price target on Microsoft
• Positive Sentiment: High odds of an earnings beat — prediction markets show MSFT with a strong probability of topping consensus, which can blunt downside risk at the print and drive a relief rally if management is constructive on guidance. Live: Will Meta Platforms Rally After Q4 Earnings Tonight?
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings focal points — investors are fixated on Azure growth rates, AI monetization (Copilot/OpenAI deals) and capex guidance; strong revenue with cautious margin commentary could still produce mixed price action. Microsoft earnings: Cloud growth and capex numbers in focus for Q2
• Negative Sentiment: Near?term margin/cost concerns — Stifel cut its price target citing expense pressure even while keeping a Buy rating, underlining investor worry that rising AI spend and capex could compress margins in the near term. Microsoft (MSFT) Price Target Lowered at Stifel on Margin Pressure Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/contract headwinds — reports that France is stepping back from certain videoconferencing infrastructure and that some third?party Xbox releases were cancelled are small but concrete operational negatives that add to short?term uncertainty. Microsoft Stock Slips as France Pulls Back on Videoconferencing Services Microsoft Stock Slips on Third-Party Xbox Game Cancelations
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction puzzle — some outlets note MSFT has slipped even after delivering strong results previously, reflecting that investors are now focused more on forward guidance and AI ROI than on past beats. That mindset can magnify volatility at the print. Microsoft (MSFT) Slid Despite Delivering Strong Results and Value Growth

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).