IT
Gartner, Inc.
IT has the edge over MSFT overall, supported by stronger valuation.
MSFT
Microsoft Corporation
MSFT has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
IT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy |
IT's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue is stable.
MSFT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
MSFT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
IT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 12x | $191 | — |
| Current | 14x | $191 | — |
| Cheap | 21x | $288 | +51% |
| Fair | 36x | $503 | +164% |
| Expensive | 49x | $692 | +263% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
IT has the edge over MSFT in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
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's PE is in its cheap range at 27x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 25x next year's earnings.
IT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect IT's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
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.
IT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $16.18 | +15% |
| Q3 2026 | $14.03 | +23% |
| Q2 2026 | $11.15 | -31% |
| Q1 2026 | $10.12 | -37% |
| Q4 2025 | $9.65 | -40% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.37 | -16% |
| Q2 2025 | $16.22 | +54% |
| Q1 2025 | $16.04 | +59% |
| Q4 2024 | $16.00 | +44% |
IT earned $14.03 per share over the past year, up 23% from the year before.
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 IT on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
IT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.5B | -1.3% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.7B | -0.6% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.5B | -1.5% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.8B | +2.2% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.5B | +2.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.7B | +5.7% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.5B | +4.2% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.7B | +8.1% |
IT's revenue grew through 2024 and has held roughly level since: $1.5B last quarter, down 1.3% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 19% | +13 points |
| Q2 2026 | 23% | +3.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 21% | +2.8 points |
| Q4 2025 | 19% | +0.5 points |
| Q3 2025 | 5.7% | -11 points |
| Q2 2025 | 19% | -0.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 18% | -0.5 points |
| Q4 2024 | 19% | -0.5 points |
IT's operating margin was 19% last quarter, up 13 points from the same quarter a year ago.
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 IT 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 IT on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
IT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $275.2M | +2.2% |
| Q2 2026 | $378.4M | +8.9% |
| Q1 2026 | $370.6M | +29% |
| Q4 2025 | $270.7M | -13% |
| Q3 2025 | $269.3M | -52% |
| Q2 2025 | $347.3M | +2% |
| Q1 2025 | $287.9M | +73% |
| Q4 2024 | $311.4M | +59% |
IT has the edge over MSFT on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
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's free cash flow has been positive every quarter for seven years: $60B over the past year, down 23% from the year before.
IT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -4% | -2.6M shares |
| 1 year | -15% | -11M shares |
| 3 years | -20% | -15.6M shares |
| 5 years | -25% | -20.8M shares |
| Available history | -30% | -27M shares |
IT has the edge over MSFT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $138.2M |
| Q2 2026 | $547.1M |
| Q1 2026 | $534.6M |
| Q4 2025 | $498.5M |
| Q3 2025 | $1.1B |
| Q2 2025 | $274.5M |
| Q1 2025 | $162.7M |
| Q4 2024 | $102M |
IT spent $1.7B buying back its own shares over the past year, up 7.8% from the year before.
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.
IT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.9x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q4 2025 | 1.0x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 0.9x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.4x | Very low |
IT's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
MSFT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
MSFT has the edge over IT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
IT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 51.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 58.0 | Neutral |
IT's weekly RSI is 52 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 58 (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).
IT PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | IT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 14x | 28x | 51% below |
| PE % | 1 | 35 | 34 pts below |
IT has the edge over MSFT on valuation relative to its sector.
MSFT PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | MSFT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 27x | 28x | 2% below |
| PE % | 16 | 35 | 19 pts below |
MSFT is trading at 27x earnings, in line with the Technology sector's median of 28x.
IT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $201.2 | 5.1% below |
| 20 week MA | $181.2 | 5.3% above |
| 50 week MA | $179.6 | 6.3% above |
| 100 week MA | $277.0 | 31% below |
| 200 week MA | $345.7 | 45% below |
IT's trend is mixed: it's above two of its five weekly moving averages, and 45% 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 IT on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
IT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $153.8 | $158.6 | +3.1% |
| 2021 | $158.6 | $325.5 | +105% |
| 2022 | $325.5 | $336.0 | +3.2% |
| 2023 | $336.0 | $451.1 | +34% |
| 2024 | $451.1 | $487.0 | +7.9% |
| 2025 | $487.0 | $252.6 | -48% |
| 2026 YTD | $252.6 | $190.8 | -24% |
IT's yearly returns have swung widely, from +105% in 2021 to −48% in 2025. It's down 24% so far in 2026.
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 the edge over IT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.