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Microsoft valuation exercise: market cap, EV and multiples vs competitors

Software, cloud, AI. We rebuild its market value from the price, split it into its parts, and compare its multiples with those of its largest competitors.

Verified figures, not advice. Every number on this page comes from the company's own filings or from exchange prices, and the source is linked. Every calculation is shown, so you can repeat it. What we do not do is tell you what a share should be worth or whether to buy it: that depends on your goals and on forecasts, and no multiple can settle it. This is a snapshot: prices of 12 Oct 2026, company results up to mid 2026. Found a mistake? Tell us and we correct it.

Step 1. Market capitalisation

StepNumberWhere it comes from
Share price (nominal value)
$541.15
Close of 12 Oct 2026
Shares outstanding
7.43 bn
Latest quarterly report cover page, as of 2026-07-23
Market capitalisation
$4.02tn
Price x shares

Market capitalisation is the value the stock market puts on all the shares together. It is the nominal share price multiplied by the number of shares.

Step 2. How the value is composed

Building blockAmountMeaning
Market capitalisation
$4.02tn
What the market asks for all the shares
+ Debt
$40.3bn
Borrowings, leases for premises excluded
- Cash
$20.9bn
Cash and equivalents
- Short-term investments
$55.9bn
Marketable securities due within a year
+ Minority interests
$0.0bn
Part of subsidiaries owned by others
Enterprise value (EV)
$3.98tn
The price of the whole business, as a buyer would see it

Of the $4.02tn market value, accounting book equity is $442.4bn. The remaining $3.58tn is what investors pay above the books: brands, software, customer relationships and expected growth that the balance sheet does not record. Price to book is 9.1x.

Step 3. Fundamentals, last twelve months

Last twelve monthsAmountMargin or note
Revenue
$331.8bn
Up to 2026-06-30
Operating income
$155.2bn
47% of revenue
EBITDA
$194.2bn
59% of revenue
Net income (GAAP)
$133.7bn
40% of revenue
Free cash flow
$67.0bn
Operating cash flow minus capital spending

Step 4. Multiples against the largest competitors

MultipleMicrosoftORCLCRMGOOGLAMZNPeer meanPeer medianvs median
P/E (price / net income)
30.0x
22.2x
19.9x
17.7x
20.7x
20.1x
20.3x
+48%
EV / sales
12.0x
7.0x
5.0x
9.4x
3.6x
6.3x
6.0x
+99%
EV / EBITDA
20.5x
14.9x
17.4x
24.2x
16.6x
18.3x
17.0x
+20%
EV / operating income
25.6x
21.9x
25.2x
28.3x
30.0x
26.3x
26.8x
-4%
P / free cash flow
60.0x
n.m.
12.7x
81.0x
n.m.
46.8x
46.8x
+28%

Context: Microsoft earns an EBITDA margin of 59%. The peers earn 47%, 29%, 39%, 22% (median 34%). A company that keeps more of each dollar of sales often trades at a higher multiple.

Oracle and Salesforce compete in business software, Alphabet and Amazon in cloud. Oracle is currently spending heavily and has negative free cash flow.

What the comparison shows

  • EV / EBITDA: 20.5x against a peer median of 17.0x (mean 18.3x). Difference to the median: +20%.
  • EV / sales: 12.0x against a peer median of 6.0x (mean 6.3x). Difference: +99%.
  • P/E: 30.0x against a peer median of 20.3x. Difference: +48%.

These are descriptions of today's prices, not forecasts. "n.m." means not meaningful, for example negative profit.

Where the comparison is distorted

  • Net income includes a gain of about $6.5bn before tax from the OpenAI recapitalization and a gain on Anthropic. Finance leases of $66.6bn are not in debt here. Counting them would raise enterprise value.
  • Oracle free cash flow is negative because of heavy capital spending.
  • Salesforce net income includes gains on investments.

Sources

Prices of 12 Oct 2026 from exchange historical data. Share counts, debt, cash and results from each company's filings with the US SEC, read on 13 October 2026 (Sony: its filings and the ECB exchange rate of 12 Oct 2026).

Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)
Oracle Corporation (ORCL)
Salesforce, Inc. (CRM)
Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL)
Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN)

Questions people ask

Does a higher multiple than competitors mean the share is overvalued?

No. It means investors pay more per dollar of sales or profit. The reason can be faster growth, higher margins or lower risk, or it can be excess optimism. A multiple gap is a question to investigate, not an answer.

Why use enterprise value and not only market cap?

Market cap prices the shares only. Enterprise value adds debt and subtracts cash, so it compares the whole business regardless of how it is financed.

Why show both the mean and the median of competitors?

The mean is pulled up by one extreme value. The median is the middle value and resists outliers. When they differ a lot, trust the median more.

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