Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Price Target Raised to $680.00

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) had its price objective boosted by Citigroup from $636.00 to $680.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the software giant’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Argus decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on Microsoft from $550.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Microsoft from $575.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $650.00 price target on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $609.54.

Microsoft Stock Performance

MSFT opened at $521.91 on Thursday. Microsoft has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $551.15. The company has a market cap of $3.88 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.24, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $512.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $438.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The software giant reported $4.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.72 by $0.17. Microsoft had a net margin of 41.17% and a return on equity of 31.28%. The firm had revenue of $92.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Microsoft will post 19.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a $0.98 dividend. This is a positive change from Microsoft’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $3.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Satya Nadella sold 86,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.46, for a total value of $43,388,826.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 486,763 shares in the company, valued at $244,092,173.98. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 150,314 shares of company stock worth $75,404,992. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sullivan Wood Capital Management LLC raised its position in Microsoft by 3.2% in the third quarter. Sullivan Wood Capital Management LLC now owns 647 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 0.4% in the third quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,487 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $2,301,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Box Hill Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Microsoft by 0.5% in the second quarter. Box Hill Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,272 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,593,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. PMG Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. PMG Family Office LLC now owns 2,063 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,058,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Financial Group grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Financial Group now owns 1,439 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $738,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Microsoft News

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft delivered a strong fiscal first quarter, with revenue of $92.28 billion and EPS of $4.89, both above expectations. Azure revenue surged 48%, while Microsoft Cloud revenue rose 30%, reinforcing the view that AI demand is translating into meaningful cloud growth. Microsoft Earnings Expose a Growing Divide in the Magnificent 7 AI Trade
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued second-quarter revenue guidance of $96.0 billion to $97.1 billion, above the $95.7 billion consensus estimate. Analysts responded with multiple price-target increases, including targets of $630 to $680, and Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to “strong buy.”
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong cash generation and diversified enterprise business continue to distinguish it from rivals facing sharper cash-flow concerns. Analysts argue that Azure, Copilot, AI agents and Microsoft’s security products provide several ways to monetize AI. The expanded Estée Lauder partnership, which will extend Copilot to more than 14,000 employees, offers another example of enterprise adoption. Estée Lauder and Microsoft Strategic Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s voluntary exit offer for approximately 60,000 employees may improve productivity and redirect resources toward AI, but it also highlights a significant restructuring as the company shifts toward more automated, equipment-intensive operations. Microsoft’s 60,000-Person Buyout Offer
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about Microsoft’s capital intensity. The company plans roughly $170 billion of AI-related capital spending, while also arranging a $25 billion bond sale—the first major U.S. debt offering since 2017—to fund its buildout. Rising borrowing costs increase scrutiny of future AI returns. Microsoft Plans to Raise $25 Billion in Debt
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly capital spending was below analyst expectations because third-party AI-chip and data-center capacity was delayed, pushing some capacity into the first half of 2027. While management described this as a supply issue rather than weaker demand, the miss hurt AI infrastructure suppliers and revived concerns about the pace of expansion.
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft’s cloud gross margin is reportedly narrowing as chip, power, data-center and labor costs rise. With the Nasdaq 100 down sharply during October amid fears of an AI spending bubble, investors are demanding proof that Microsoft’s large backlog will convert into profitable cash flow—not merely future revenue.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a global technology company that develops software, cloud services, devices and digital platforms. Its products and services are used by consumers, businesses, governments and educational institutions worldwide.

The company’s principal offerings include the Windows operating system; Microsoft 365 productivity applications such as Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook; Azure cloud computing and infrastructure services; Dynamics business applications; and enterprise security solutions.