Citigroup Cuts Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Price Target to $570.00

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) had its price objective decreased by stock analysts at Citigroup from $620.00 to $570.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the software giant’s stock. Citigroup’s price target points to a potential upside of 43.39% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. New Street Research dropped their target price on Microsoft from $675.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial downgraded Microsoft from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. President Capital boosted their price target on Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their price target on Microsoft from $570.00 to $525.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Forty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $557.96.

Microsoft Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT traded up $12.59 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $397.52. The company had a trading volume of 12,530,632 shares, compared to its average volume of 37,337,074. Microsoft has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $555.45. The firm has a market cap of $2.95 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.66, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.13. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $401.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $412.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.06 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $82.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.44 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 39.34% and a return on equity of 31.94%. The business’s revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Microsoft will post 16.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Amy Coleman sold 1,262 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were 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 owned 46,003 shares in the company, valued at $18,922,874.02. The trade was a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total transaction of $7,145,345.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,928,792.23. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. 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.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in 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 position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Frankly Finances LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the second quarter worth $35,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citi reportedly identified Microsoft as one of the top AI vendors, reinforcing the company’s leadership in enterprise AI and Azure-related growth. Citi Finds Microsoft (MSFT) as One of the Top AI Vendors
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft announced a strategic partnership with 3M to advance AI data center infrastructure and enterprise transformation, a sign of continued demand for its cloud and AI stack. 3M and Microsoft announce strategic partnership to advance AI data center infrastructure and enterprise transformation
• Positive Sentiment: Bernstein’s CIO survey pointed to strong IT budget growth in 2026, supporting the outlook for Microsoft’s Azure, software, and AI services spending. Bernstein’s mid-year CIO survey calls for strong IT budget growth in 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is highlighted in multiple notes as an attractive long-term AI/cloud compounder ahead of earnings, suggesting some analysts still see upside into the July 29 report. One Hike, One Cut: Analysts Take Different Actions on Microsoft Stock Ahead of Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft remains in focus ahead of its upcoming fiscal Q4 earnings, with investors looking for updates on Azure growth, AI spending, and margin trends. Have Major Catalysts Lined Up for Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT)?
• Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s CEO recently warned that companies can give away proprietary knowledge when using AI, which underscores the strategic importance of Microsoft’s enterprise AI tools but is not an immediate financial catalyst. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Says Businesses ‘Pay for Intelligence Twice,’ Warns AI Can Cost Companies Proprietary Knowledge
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms are advertising class-action claims over alleged Copilot-related misstatements and securities fraud, creating headline risk for MSFT shares. MSFT Shareholder Alert: August 11, 2026 Lead Plaintiff Deadline in Microsoft Corporation Securities Class Action
• Negative Sentiment: Security concerns are also in the news after Microsoft patched a record number of flaws, including zero-days under active attack, which may remind investors of ongoing product and platform risks. Microsoft Patches a Record 570 Security Flaws
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo cut its price target on Microsoft, which can pressure sentiment even though the firm kept an overweight rating. Microsoft price target lowered by Wells Fargo
• Negative Sentiment: Microsoft is also facing criticism over rising emissions tied to its AI data-center buildout, adding ESG pressure as the company expands infrastructure. Microsoft’s emissions rose 25% last year

Microsoft Company Profile

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).