Microsoft stock gains 1.59 percent as targets rise

Published on 09/22/2026 at 12:25 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS

Microsoft stock closed at USD 501.61 on September 21, 2026, up 1.59 percent. Fiscal fourth-quarter revenue reached USD 90.01 billion.

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Microsoft Corporation (ISIN US5949181045) stock closed at USD 501.61 on Nasdaq on September 21, 2026, gaining USD 7.83 or 1.59 percent. The move followed a broader technology rally as the Nasdaq reached a record close on September 21, 2026, with Microsoft among the large technology stocks advancing.

Price targets move higher

As Investing.com reported on September 21, 2026, Cantor Fitzgerald raised its Microsoft price target to USD 608 from USD 522 while maintaining an Overweight rating. The increase of USD 86 gives the current target a concrete valuation reference against the September 21 closing price.

Other published estimates also point to a wide range of expectations. Barchart reported on September 21, 2026, that JPMorgan Chase had raised its target to USD 625 on August 13, while Stifel lifted its target to USD 530 from USD 450 and retained a Hold rating. The differing targets show that the central debate is not demand alone, but how much value investors assign to artificial intelligence growth and the spending required to support it.

Quarterly growth supplies evidence

Microsoft's fiscal fourth quarter of 2026 delivered USD 90.01 billion in revenue, compared with USD 87.62 billion expected by analysts, according to MarketBeat on September 22, 2026. Revenue increased 17.7 percent from the same quarter a year earlier, while earnings per share rose to USD 4.74 from USD 3.65.

The same July 2026 quarter produced EPS of USD 4.74, beating the USD 4.24 consensus estimate by USD 0.50, while net margin reached 40.31 percent. Barchart reported that fiscal fourth-quarter revenue climbed 18 percent year over year to USD 90 billion, operating income rose 18 percent to USD 40.6 billion, and GAAP net income increased 31 percent to USD 35.8 billion.

AI spending remains the counterweight

The valuation leaves less room for execution misses. Microsoft traded at 27.93 times earnings on September 22, 2026, with a market capitalization of USD 3.72 trillion, according to MarketBeat data. A separate analysis published by The Motley Fool on September 22, 2026, identified concentration around Microsoft's largest artificial intelligence customer as a key risk.

That risk matters because the stock remains below its 52-week high of USD 553.72 but well above its 52-week low of USD 349.20, both recorded in the September 22, 2026 market data. The gap between those levels and the current price captures the market's confidence in Microsoft's earnings growth while leaving capital intensity and customer concentration as measurable counter-factors.

Microsoft stock closes above USD 500

Microsoft stock closed at USD 501.61 on Nasdaq on September 21, 2026, with volume of 28 million shares and a market capitalization of USD 3.72 trillion as of September 22, 2026. The next scheduled fiscal first-quarter 2027 results date is November 4, 2026, as reported by Barchart.