DA Davidson Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Stock Price

02 May 2026, 04:30 by Scott Moore · The Cerbat Gem

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by equities researchers at DA Davidson from $650.00 to $550.00 in a report released on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the software giant’s stock. DA Davidson’s price target points to a potential upside of 32.72% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Microsoft from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America started coverage on Microsoft in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Microsoft from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on Microsoft to $502.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, April 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $556.15.

Read Our Latest Analysis on MSFT

Microsoft Trading Up 1.6%

MSFT opened at $414.41 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $3.08 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.10. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $395.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $448.37. Microsoft has a one year low of $356.28 and a one year high of $555.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Microsoft will post 16.6 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, EVP Kathleen T. Hogan sold 12,321 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $5,045,695.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 137,933 shares in the company, valued at $56,486,322.16. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John W. Stanton bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $397.35 per share, with a total value of $1,986,750.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 83,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,339,651.75. This trade represents a 6.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Microsoft

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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: Q3 results and the earnings call highlighted 40%+ Azure/cloud growth and accelerating AI monetization, giving investors confidence in the company’s long-term AI revenue runway. Microsoft Earnings Call: AI Growth Surges, Margins Squeezed
Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Pentagon signed agreements allowing Microsoft’s AI tech on classified networks — a credibility and contract win that can translate into long-term, high‑value government revenue. Pentagon inks deals with Nvidia, Microsoft and AWS to deploy AI on classified networks
Positive Sentiment: Analyst actions include several price‑target raises and reaffirmations (Benchmark raised to $525, others keep buy ratings), signaling continued bullish conviction among some buy‑side firms. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) Price Target Increased to $525 by Benchmark
Positive Sentiment: Product catalyst: rollout of Windows 11’s new Xbox Mode supports consumer engagement and adds a near‑term, tangible product story for the stock. Microsoft Stock (MSFT) Jumps on Windows 11 Xbox Mode Rollout
Neutral Sentiment: The revised Microsoft–OpenAI relationship (ending exclusivity) is being parsed by markets: it reduces some exclusivity upside but clarifies commercial terms that could be neutral-to-positive longer term depending on monetization. Microsoft and OpenAI Just Ended Their Exclusive Deal, and Wall Street Is Trying Hard to Shake Off the Negatives for MSFT Stock
Neutral Sentiment: Commentary from TV/hosts (e.g., Jim Cramer) describes MSFT as attractively valued but notes limited new messaging on the call — this shapes retail sentiment but isn’t new fundamental data. Jim Cramer on Microsoft: “Maybe You Can Consider It Cheap, But It’s Software”
Negative Sentiment: Investors remain focused on record capex (roughly $190B guidance) and the near‑term hit to free cash flow — that spending narrative caused the post‑earnings pullback and continues to cap the multiple. Beat meets bill: MSFT stock slips on AI expenditure concerns despite strong Q3
Negative Sentiment: Goldman’s note flagging extreme cloud cash burn and other outlets highlighting the industry’s rising AI capex raises concern that spending could pressure margins and returns if monetization lags. Microsoft, Amazon On Watch ― Goldman Sounds Alarm On 90% Cloud Cash Burn
Negative Sentiment: Some brokers trimmed price targets or cut upside on valuation as they bake in capex risk (HSBC cut its target), keeping a portion of the market cautious. HSBC Cuts Microsoft Price Target to $571 From $593

Microsoft Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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).