Griffin Securities Research Analysts Lower Earnings Estimates for Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Microsoft Co. (NASDAQ:MSFT) – Investment analysts at Griffin Securities dropped their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Microsoft in a report issued on Wednesday, July 31st. Griffin Securities analyst J. Vleeschhouwer now expects that the software giant will post earnings of $3.06 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $3.11. The consensus estimate for Microsoft’s current full-year earnings is $13.07 per share. Griffin Securities also issued estimates for Microsoft’s Q2 2025 earnings at $3.24 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $3.16 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $3.31 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $12.78 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $3.42 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $3.60 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $3.52 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $14.23 EPS.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The software giant reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $64.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.38 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 35.96% and a return on equity of 37.13%. The business’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 EPS.

MSFT has been the topic of a number of other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Microsoft from $470.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Microsoft from $475.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Microsoft from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty-three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $487.33.

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of MSFT opened at $408.49 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $439.56 and its 200 day moving average is $421.54. Microsoft has a 12-month low of $309.45 and a 12-month high of $468.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market cap of $3.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 35.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Microsoft

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its holdings in Microsoft by 169.2% during the 2nd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 70 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 1,290.0% in the first quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $75,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.68, for a total transaction of $10,642,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 104,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,674,690.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CMO Takeshi Numoto sold 244 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.53, for a total value of $101,389.32. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 47,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,534,480.83. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Judson Althoff sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.68, for a total value of $10,642,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 104,949 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,674,690.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 25,566 shares of company stock worth $10,877,535. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 25.97%.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation develops and supports software, services, devices and solutions worldwide. The Productivity and Business Processes segment offers office, exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, office 365 Security and Compliance, Microsoft viva, and Microsoft 365 copilot; and office consumer services, such as Microsoft 365 consumer subscriptions, Office licensed on-premises, and other office services.