Yahoo Finance Microsoft (MSFT) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know
In the latest trading session, Microsoft (MSFT) closed at $136.33, marking a -0.72% move from the previous day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.31%. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.52%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.28%.
Heading into today, shares of the software maker had gained 2.72% over the past month, outpacing the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 2.54% and lagging the S&P 500's gain of 2.92% in that time.
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from MSFT as it approaches its next earnings report date. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.24, up 8.96% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $32.21 billion, up 10.76% from the year-ago period.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $5.22 per share and revenue of $139.76 billion, which would represent changes of +9.99% and +11.06%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for MSFT. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. MSFT currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Looking at its valuation, MSFT is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 26.28. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 29.8.
Also, we should mention that MSFT has a PEG ratio of 2.39. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Computer - Software was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.04 at yesterday's closing price.
The Computer - Software industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 69, putting it in the top 27% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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