ACLS
Axcelis Technologies, Inc.
ACLS offers stronger modeled upside, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
MSFT
Microsoft Corporation
MSFT has the edge over ACLS overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
ACLS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Strong |
ACLS's revenue and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its profitability and cash flow are stable.
MSFT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
MSFT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
ACLS PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 14x | $48.20 | -55% |
| Forward | 18x | $108 | — |
| Fair | 22x | $73.95 | -32% |
| Current | 32x | $108 | — |
| Expensive | 34x | $113 | +4.9% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ACLS's PE is in its expensive range at 32x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 18x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
MSFT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 25x | $523 | — |
| Cheap | 27x | $525 | +0.4% |
| Current | 27x | $523 | — |
| Fair | 34x | $652 | +25% |
| Expensive | 37x | $711 | +36% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MSFT has the edge over ACLS in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
ACLS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
ACLS has the edge over MSFT on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
MSFT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Moderate | |
| High |
Analysts expect strong earnings and revenue growth for MSFT, with profitability holding steady.
ACLS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $6.05 | +80% |
| Q3 2026 | $3.37 | -20% |
| Q2 2026 | $2.99 | -39% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.22 | -41% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.80 | -38% |
| Q3 2025 | $4.23 | -37% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.89 | -33% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.46 | -28% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.15 | -17% |
ACLS's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $3.37 over the past year, against $7.57 in early 2024.
MSFT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $20.79 | +8.6% |
| Q3 2026 | $19.15 | +36% |
| Q2 2026 | $17.95 | +32% |
| Q1 2026 | $16.80 | +30% |
| Q4 2025 | $15.99 | +29% |
| Q3 2025 | $14.06 | +16% |
| Q2 2025 | $13.64 | +16% |
| Q1 2025 | $12.93 | +12% |
| Q4 2024 | $12.41 | +12% |
MSFT has the edge over ACLS on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
ACLS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $237.8M | +11% |
| Q2 2026 | $215.2M | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $199M | +3.3% |
| Q4 2025 | $238.3M | -5.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $213.6M | -17% |
| Q2 2025 | $194.5M | -24% |
| Q1 2025 | $192.6M | -24% |
| Q4 2024 | $252.4M | -19% |
ACLS's revenue is recovering but still below its 2023 peak: $238M last quarter, up 11% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 12% | -0.2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 9.4% | -5.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 4% | -11 points |
| Q4 2025 | 15% | -6.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 12% | -6.6 points |
| Q2 2025 | 15% | -5.7 points |
| Q1 2025 | 15% | -7.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 22% | -3.9 points |
ACLS's operating margin was 12% last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago, near the bottom of its range since 2019.
MSFT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $92.3B | +19% |
| Q2 2026 | $90B | +18% |
| Q1 2026 | $82.9B | +18% |
| Q4 2025 | $81.3B | +17% |
| Q3 2025 | $77.7B | +18% |
| Q2 2025 | $76.4B | +18% |
| Q1 2025 | $70.1B | +13% |
| Q4 2024 | $69.6B | +12% |
MSFT has the edge over ACLS on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 50% | +0.9 points |
| Q2 2026 | 45% | +0.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 46% | +0.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 47% | +1.6 points |
| Q3 2025 | 49% | +2.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 45% | +1.8 points |
| Q1 2025 | 46% | +1.1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 45% | +1.9 points |
MSFT has the edge over ACLS on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
ACLS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $37.7M | -13% |
| Q2 2026 | $14.8M | -61% |
| Q1 2026 | $16.3M | -53% |
| Q4 2025 | -$8.9M | -210% |
| Q3 2025 | $43.3M | +3.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $37.7M | -0.8% |
| Q1 2025 | $34.8M | -14% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.1M | -85% |
ACLS still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2022 peak: $60M over the past year.
MSFT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $18.6B | -27% |
| Q2 2026 | $19.6B | -23% |
| Q1 2026 | $15.8B | -22% |
| Q4 2025 | $5.9B | -9.3% |
| Q3 2025 | $25.7B | +33% |
| Q2 2025 | $25.6B | +9.6% |
| Q1 2025 | $20.3B | -3.2% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.5B | -29% |
MSFT has the edge over ACLS on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
ACLS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.1% | -29K shares |
| 1 year | -1.1% | -345K shares |
| 3 years | -6.2% | -2.1M shares |
| 5 years | -8.8% | -3M shares |
| Available history | -8% | -2.7M shares |
ACLS has the edge over MSFT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | $25.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $32.3M |
| Q2 2025 | $45.3M |
| Q1 2025 | $18.2M |
| Q4 2024 | $15.1M |
| Q3 2024 | $15.4M |
| Q2 2024 | $15M |
MSFT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.1% | -7M shares |
| 1 year | -0.3% | -20M shares |
| 3 years | -0.2% | -16M shares |
| 5 years | -1.6% | -121M shares |
| Available history | -3.2% | -245M shares |
MSFT has 7.4B diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.4B |
| Q2 2026 | $4.6B |
| Q1 2026 | $4.6B |
| Q4 2025 | $7.4B |
| Q3 2025 | $5.7B |
| Q2 2025 | $4.5B |
| Q1 2025 | $4.8B |
| Q4 2024 | $5B |
MSFT spent $21B buying back its own shares over the past year, up 5.2% from the year before.
ACLS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1.7x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -1.5x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -1.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.1x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -1.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -1.0x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.9x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
ACLS has the edge over MSFT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
MSFT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
MSFT's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
ACLS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 44.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 23.9 | Neutral |
ACLS's weekly RSI is 44 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 24 (neutral).
MSFT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 62.1 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 68.0 | Neutral |
MSFT's weekly RSI is 62 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 68 (neutral).
ACLS PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | ACLS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 32x | 28x | 15% above |
| PE % | 82 | 35 | 47 pts above |
ACLS is trading at 32x earnings, a 15% premium to the Technology sector's median of 28x.
MSFT PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | MSFT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 27x | 28x | 2% below |
| PE % | 16 | 35 | 19 pts below |
MSFT has the edge over ACLS on valuation relative to its sector.
ACLS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $116.0 | 6.8% below |
| 20 week MA | $123.9 | 13% below |
| 50 week MA | $117.7 | 8.2% below |
| 100 week MA | $93.6 | 15% above |
| 200 week MA | $110.6 | 2.3% below |
ACLS's trend is mixed: it's above one of its five weekly moving averages, and 2.3% below its 200-week average.
MSFT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $524.7 | 0.3% below |
| 20 week MA | $484.8 | 7.9% above |
| 50 week MA | $446.9 | 17% above |
| 100 week MA | $453.8 | 15% above |
| 200 week MA | $411.5 | 27% above |
MSFT has the edge over ACLS on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
ACLS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $24.2 | $29.2 | +21% |
| 2021 | $29.2 | $68.1 | +133% |
| 2022 | $68.1 | $80.3 | +18% |
| 2023 | $80.3 | $129.7 | +62% |
| 2024 | $129.7 | $71.2 | -45% |
| 2025 | $71.2 | $82.6 | +16% |
| 2026 YTD | $82.6 | $108.1 | +31% |
ACLS has the edge over MSFT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
MSFT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $159.0 | $222.8 | +40% |
| 2021 | $222.8 | $334.7 | +50% |
| 2022 | $334.7 | $238.7 | -29% |
| 2023 | $238.7 | $376.0 | +58% |
| 2024 | $376.0 | $430.5 | +14% |
| 2025 | $430.5 | $487.7 | +13% |
| 2026 YTD | $487.7 | $523.0 | +7.2% |
MSFT has finished higher in five of the last six years, two of them by more than 50%. It's up 7.2% so far in 2026.