KEYS
Keysight Technologies, Inc.
KEYS offers stronger fundamentals, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
MSFT
Microsoft Corporation
MSFT has the edge over KEYS overall, supported by stronger valuation and lower modeled downside.
KEYS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
KEYS's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently strong.
MSFT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
MSFT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
KEYS PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 22x | $304 | — |
| Cheap | 26x | $192 | -37% |
| Fair | 32x | $235 | -23% |
| Current | 42x | $304 | — |
| Expensive | 46x | $339 | +11% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
KEYS's PE is in its expensive range at 42x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 22x 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 KEYS in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
KEYS Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
KEYS 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.
KEYS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $13.77 | +89% |
| Q3 2026 | $7.30 | +132% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.10 | +43% |
| Q1 2026 | $5.57 | +59% |
| Q4 2025 | $4.91 | +40% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.15 | -39% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.27 | -6.8% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.50 | -36% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.51 | -41% |
KEYS earned $7.30 per share over the past year, up 132% 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 KEYS on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
KEYS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.8B | +37% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.7B | +31% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.6B | +23% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.4B | +10% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.4B | +11% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.3B | +7.4% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.3B | +3.1% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.3B | -1.8% |
KEYS's revenue has grown year over year for seven quarters in a row: $1.8B last quarter, up 37% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 25% | +7.7 points |
| Q2 2026 | 24% | +7.8 points |
| Q1 2026 | 16% | -1.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 15% | -2.6 points |
| Q3 2025 | 17% | +0.5 points |
| Q2 2025 | 16% | +1.3 points |
| Q1 2025 | 17% | -0.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | 18% | -6.3 points |
KEYS's operating margin was 25% last quarter, up 7.7 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 KEYS 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 KEYS on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
KEYS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $403M | +38% |
| Q2 2026 | $472M | +3.3% |
| Q1 2026 | $407M | +18% |
| Q4 2025 | $187M | -42% |
| Q3 2025 | $291M | +31% |
| Q2 2025 | $457M | +518% |
| Q1 2025 | $346M | +23% |
| Q4 2024 | $321M | -5.6% |
KEYS 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.
KEYS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | -- |
| 1 year | 0% | -- |
| 3 years | -3.4% | -6M shares |
| 5 years | -7% | -13M shares |
| Available history | -9.4% | -18M shares |
KEYS has 173M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $210M |
| Q2 2026 | $220M |
| Q1 2026 | $87M |
| Q4 2025 | $100M |
| Q3 2025 | $50M |
| Q2 2025 | $150M |
| Q1 2025 | $75M |
| Q4 2024 | $150M |
KEYS spent $617M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 45% 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 the edge over KEYS on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| 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.
KEYS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
KEYS 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).
KEYS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 46.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 20.0 | Neutral |
KEYS's weekly RSI is 46 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 20 (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).
KEYS PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | KEYS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 42x | 28x | 50% above |
| PE % | 71 | 35 | 36 pts above |
KEYS is trading at 42x earnings, a 50% 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 KEYS on valuation relative to its sector.
KEYS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $332.4 | 8.5% below |
| 20 week MA | $329.2 | 7.6% below |
| 50 week MA | $300.2 | 1.3% above |
| 100 week MA | $232.0 | 31% above |
| 200 week MA | $191.4 | 59% above |
KEYS has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8- and 20-week averages, but 59% above 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 KEYS on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
KEYS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $103.2 | $131.0 | +27% |
| 2021 | $131.0 | $201.4 | +54% |
| 2022 | $201.4 | $169.8 | -16% |
| 2023 | $169.8 | $159.1 | -6.3% |
| 2024 | $159.1 | $162.9 | +2.4% |
| 2025 | $162.9 | $206.0 | +26% |
| 2026 YTD | $206.0 | $304.2 | +48% |
KEYS 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.