Microsoft's Stock Receives Strong Buy Rating from Top Analysts

JP Morgan's Mark Murphy raised their price target on Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) by 6.8% from $440 to $470 on 2024/04/26. The analyst maintained their Strong Buy rating on the stock.

In the wake of Microsoft's impressive Q3 2024 earnings report, Murphy expressed optimism about the future growth of Azure, the company's cloud computing platform. He noted that Azure's expansion could potentially accelerate in the coming year. The analyst's positive outlook on Microsoft's prospects is in line with other analysts who have also updated their price targets and ratings for the stock.

Bernstein's Mark Moerdler raised their price target by 5.2% from $465 to $489 and maintained their Buy rating on the stock. Goldman Sachs's Kash Rangan raised their price target by 14.4% from $450 to $515 and maintained their Strong Buy rating on the stock. Piper Sandler's Brent A. Bracelin raised their price target by 2.2% from $455 to $465 and reiterated their Strong Buy rating on the stock.

These updates from top-rated analysts indicate a widespread bullish sentiment towards Microsoft. In fact, 100% of the top-rated analysts currently rate MSFT as a Strong Buy or Buy, with no analysts seeing it as a Hold or recommending selling the stock.

The consensus forecast among analysts is that Microsoft's next fiscal year will deliver earnings per share (EPS) of $12.67. If the analysts' predictions hold true, MSFT's yearly EPS will be up by 9.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Since Microsoft's latest quarterly report on 2024/04/25, the stock price has increased by 1.8%. Year-over-year, the stock has surged by an impressive 37.6%. Microsoft's performance has outpaced the broader market, with the S&P 500 up 25.7% during the same period.

JP Morgan analyst Mark Murphy, who raised the price target on MSFT, has a strong track record as a Wall Street analyst. Murphy is ranked in the top 9% out of 4,566 Wall Street analysts by WallStreetZen. With an average return of 10.1% and a win rate of 57.6%, Murphy specializes in the Technology and Communication Services sectors, among others.

Microsoft Corporation, headquartered in Redmond, Washington, is a global technology company that develops, licenses, and supports software, services, devices, and solutions. The company operates in three segments: Productivity and Business Processes, Intelligent Cloud, and More Personal Computing. Microsoft's diverse product portfolio includes popular offerings such as Office, Exchange, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, Skype, Outlook.com, OneDrive, LinkedIn, Dynamics 365, and Azure.

The Productivity and Business Processes segment provides a range of tools and solutions to enhance organizational efficiency and collaboration. The Intelligent Cloud segment offers cloud-based services, including Azure, which has been a key driver of Microsoft's growth. The More Personal Computing segment encompasses Windows licensing, hardware devices such as Surface and Xbox, and search-related services.

Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella highlighted the transformative power of Microsoft's AI solutions, stating, "Microsoft Copilot and the Copilot stack are orchestrating a new era of AI transformation, driving better business outcomes across every role and industry." Executive VP and CFO Amy Hood also emphasized the strong performance of Microsoft's cloud business, with Microsoft Cloud revenue reaching $35.1B in Q3 2024, a 23% year-over-year increase.

Want to get in touch? Email us at news@wallstreetzen.com.

WallStreetZen and Don Francis do not hold any positions in the companies mentioned in this article. The information and statistics provided herein are presented for general informational purposes only and may not be accurate, complete, or up-to-date. It should not be interpreted as a recommendation to buy or sell any stocks and should not be solely relied upon for making investment decisions. It does not take into account your financial situation or risk profile. All investors should conduct their own investment due diligence before buying a stock. WallStreetZen expressly disclaims any liability for the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of the analysts' information, price targets, ratings, or opinions.