Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Rating Lowered to Moderate Buy at Phillip Securities

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) was downgraded by equities researchers at Phillip Securities from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on MSFT. Argus cut their price target on Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $540.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. President Capital boosted their target price on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $558.64.

Microsoft Stock Up 4.9%

NASDAQ MSFT opened at $487.65 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $399.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $405.57. Microsoft has a one year low of $349.20 and a one year high of $553.72. The firm has a market cap of $3.62 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Microsoft will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Microsoft news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.34, for a total transaction of $519,111.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Frankly Finances LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 287.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Azure growth and AI monetization are driving the rally. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue and earnings exceeded expectations, while Azure growth accelerated to approximately 30%. Analysts and commentators said demand for cloud and generative-AI services is beginning to justify the company’s roughly $175 billion in annual spending. Microsoft Just Proved that AI Spending Can Pay Off
• Positive Sentiment: Strong bookings and infrastructure commitments support future revenue. Microsoft’s cloud backlog and more than $100 billion in data-center leases indicate that customers are committing to long-term capacity, giving investors greater confidence in continued Azure and AI expansion. Big Tech’s Cloud Backlog Just Hit $2.3 Trillion
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street sentiment has improved. Analysts described Microsoft as one of the better-positioned hyperscalers in the AI race, citing its balance sheet, recurring software revenue, free-cash-flow generation and cloud leadership. The post-earnings advance has erased the stock’s prior 2026 losses and renewed expectations for additional upside. Microsoft’s Stock Is on a Run Not Seen in 26 Years
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft 365 ecosystem expansion. Paychex launched its WISE workforce-intelligence integration in Microsoft 365 Copilot and Teams, reinforcing Microsoft’s platform reach among small and midsize businesses, although the direct financial impact for MSFT is likely modest. Paychex Brings WISE Workforce Intelligence to Microsoft 365 Copilot and Teams
• Negative Sentiment: Securities litigation remains an overhang. Several law firms publicized a class action concerning alleged misrepresentations about Copilot functionality, AI adoption and Azure growth, with an August 11 lead-plaintiff deadline. The announcements do not establish liability but could increase legal, reputational and disclosure risks. MSFT Shareholder Alert
• Negative Sentiment: Capital spending and free cash flow remain watch points. The scale of AI infrastructure spending could pressure cash flow and returns if monetization slows, even though recent results have eased those concerns. The AI Spending Boom and Free Cash Flow

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).