MSFT
Microsoft Corporation
MSFT has lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
PLTR
Palantir Technologies Inc.
PLTR has the edge over MSFT overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger valuation.
MSFT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
MSFT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
PLTR Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
PLTR's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently strong.
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.
PLTR PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 75x | $172 | — |
| Current | 120x | $172 | — |
| Cheap | 165x | $236 | +37% |
| Fair | 251x | $359 | +109% |
| Expensive | 452x | $646 | +277% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
PLTR has the edge over MSFT in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
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.
PLTR Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strong growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Moderate |
PLTR has the edge over MSFT on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
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's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $19.15 over the past year, up 36% from the year before, and higher year over year for 14 quarters in a row.
PLTR Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $2.30 | +61% |
| Q3 2026 | $1.43 | +240% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.17 | +290% |
| Q1 2026 | $0.89 | +287% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.63 | +232% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.42 | +110% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.30 | +76% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.23 | +92% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.19 | +111% |
PLTR has the edge over MSFT on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
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's revenue has grown year over year every quarter since late 2020: $92.3B last quarter, up 19% from the same quarter a year ago.
| 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 PLTR on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
PLTR Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $2.3B | +96% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.9B | +93% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.6B | +85% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.4B | +70% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.2B | +63% |
| Q2 2025 | $1B | +48% |
| Q1 2025 | $883.9M | +39% |
| Q4 2024 | $827.5M | +36% |
PLTR has the edge over MSFT on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 47% | +14 points |
| Q2 2026 | 47% | +20 points |
| Q1 2026 | 46% | +26 points |
| Q4 2025 | 41% | +40 points |
| Q3 2025 | 33% | +18 points |
| Q2 2025 | 27% | +11 points |
| Q1 2025 | 20% | +7.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 1.3% | -9.5 points |
PLTR's operating margin was 47% last quarter, up 14 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the top of its range since 2019.
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.
PLTR Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.2B | +139% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.2B | +126% |
| Q1 2026 | $891.8M | +193% |
| Q4 2025 | $764M | +67% |
| Q3 2025 | $500.9M | +20% |
| Q2 2025 | $531.6M | +276% |
| Q1 2025 | $304.1M | +140% |
| Q4 2024 | $457.2M | +54% |
PLTR has the edge over MSFT on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
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 PLTR 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.
PLTR Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.2% | +5.2M shares |
| 1 year | +0.1% | +2.9M shares |
| 3 years | +11% | +248M shares |
| 5 years | +31% | +610M shares |
| Available history | +184% | +1.7B shares |
PLTR has 2.6B diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | $19.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $19.2M |
| Q2 2025 | $18.6M |
| Q1 2025 | $18M |
| Q4 2024 | $18.6M |
| Q3 2024 | $18.9M |
| Q2 2024 | $17.7M |
| Q1 2024 | $9M |
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).
PLTR Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -1.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.0x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -1.9x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -2.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -6.1x | Net Cash |
PLTR has the edge over MSFT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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).
PLTR Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 51.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 47.4 | Neutral |
PLTR's weekly RSI is 51 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 47 (neutral).
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 PLTR on valuation relative to its sector.
PLTR PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | PLTR | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 120x | 28x | 331% above |
| PE % | 1 | 38 | 37 pts below |
PLTR is trading at 120x earnings, a 331% premium to the Technology sector's median of 28x.
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's trend is up, with a small recent dip: it's below only its 8-week average, and 27% above its 200-week average.
PLTR Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $185.8 | 7.6% below |
| 20 week MA | $167.6 | 2.4% above |
| 50 week MA | $157.1 | 9.2% above |
| 100 week MA | $143.8 | 19% above |
| 200 week MA | $83.3 | 106% above |
PLTR's trend is up, with a small recent dip: it's below only its 8-week average, and 106% above its 200-week average.
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 PLTR on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
PLTR Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $9.20 | $27.8 | +202% |
| 2021 | $27.8 | $18.9 | -32% |
| 2022 | $18.9 | $6.29 | -67% |
| 2023 | $6.29 | $17.2 | +173% |
| 2024 | $17.2 | $79.1 | +361% |
| 2025 | $79.1 | $188.7 | +139% |
| 2026 YTD | $188.7 | $171.6 | -9.1% |
PLTR's yearly returns have swung widely, from +361% in 2024 to −67% in 2022. It's down 9.1% so far in 2026.