MSFT
Microsoft Corporation
MSFT has the edge over VRSN overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger modeled upside.
VRSN
VeriSign, Inc.
VRSN's outlook is improving, though it still trails on the overall score.
MSFT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
MSFT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
VRSN Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
VRSN's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently strong, and its revenue is stable.
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 VRSN in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
VRSN PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 25x | $228 | -27% |
| Forward | 29x | $312 | — |
| Fair | 30x | $282 | -9.6% |
| Current | 34x | $312 | — |
| Expensive | 35x | $326 | +4.3% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
VRSN's PE is in its expensive range at 34x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 29x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
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.
VRSN Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
VRSN 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 has the edge over VRSN on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
VRSN Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $10.86 | +17% |
| Q3 2026 | $9.30 | +8.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $9.22 | +10% |
| Q1 2026 | $9.05 | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $8.81 | +10% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.58 | 0% |
| Q2 2025 | $8.38 | +0.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $8.18 | +0.7% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.00 | +1.3% |
VRSN earned $9.30 per share over the past year, up 8.4% from the year before.
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 VRSN on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| 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's operating margin was 50% last quarter, up 0.9 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the top of its range since 2019.
VRSN Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $443M | +5.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $434.6M | +6% |
| Q1 2026 | $428.9M | +6.6% |
| Q4 2025 | $425.3M | +7.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $419.1M | +7.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $409.9M | +5.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $402.3M | +4.7% |
| Q4 2024 | $395.4M | +3.9% |
VRSN's revenue has grown year over year every quarter since late 2020: $443M last quarter, up 5.7% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 67% | -0.9 points |
| Q2 2026 | 68% | -0.3 points |
| Q1 2026 | 68% | +1 points |
| Q4 2025 | 67% | +0.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 68% | -1.1 points |
| Q2 2025 | 68% | -0.3 points |
| Q1 2025 | 67% | 0 points |
| Q4 2024 | 67% | -0.7 points |
VRSN has the edge over MSFT on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
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.
VRSN Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $260.7M | -14% |
| Q2 2026 | $212.8M | +9.3% |
| Q1 2026 | $265.2M | -7.1% |
| Q4 2025 | $285.1M | +28% |
| Q3 2025 | $303M | +22% |
| Q2 2025 | $194.7M | +29% |
| Q1 2025 | $285.5M | +13% |
| Q4 2024 | $222M | +11% |
VRSN 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 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.
VRSN Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.8% | -700K shares |
| 1 year | -3.4% | -3.2M shares |
| 3 years | -12% | -12.6M shares |
| 5 years | -19% | -21.4M shares |
| Available history | -24% | -28.6M shares |
VRSN has the edge over MSFT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $193.2M |
| Q2 2026 | $201.4M |
| Q1 2026 | $225.4M |
| Q4 2025 | $254.4M |
| Q3 2025 | $218.7M |
| Q2 2025 | $166.8M |
| Q1 2025 | $241.7M |
| Q4 2024 | $262.3M |
VRSN spent $874M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 1.7% from the year before.
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).
VRSN Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | 1.5x | Healthy |
VRSN 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).
VRSN Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 63.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 78.0 | Neutral |
VRSN's weekly RSI is 64 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 78 (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 VRSN on valuation relative to its sector.
VRSN PE vs Technology Sector
| Metric | VRSN | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 34x | 28x | 21% above |
| PE % | 74 | 35 | 39 pts above |
VRSN is trading at 34x earnings, a 21% 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.
VRSN Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $301.3 | 3.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $291.3 | 7.3% above |
| 50 week MA | $270.2 | 16% above |
| 100 week MA | $263.2 | 19% above |
| 200 week MA | $230.6 | 36% above |
VRSN has the edge over MSFT on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
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.
VRSN Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $194.1 | $214.6 | +11% |
| 2021 | $214.6 | $249.6 | +16% |
| 2022 | $249.6 | $203.7 | -18% |
| 2023 | $203.7 | $206.0 | +1.1% |
| 2024 | $206.0 | $204.0 | -1% |
| 2025 | $204.0 | $246.3 | +21% |
| 2026 YTD | $246.3 | $312.5 | +27% |
VRSN has the edge over MSFT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.