AMAT vs MSFT: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Applied Materials, Inc. and Microsoft Corporation — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-04-22.
Applied Materials, Inc. · Technology
$394.33
-58.9% upside to fair value
Grade C
High Quality
VS
Microsoft Corporation · Technology
$372.20
+32.4% upside to fair value
High Conviction
Grade A
QuantHub Verdict
MSFT has more upside to fair value
(+32.4%).
MSFT trades at a lower forward P/E
(22.0x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
AMAT |
MSFT |
| Current Price |
$394.33 |
$372.20 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$162.08 |
$493.00 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-58.9%
|
+32.4%
|
| Market Cap |
$312.9B |
$2,763.6B |
| Forward P/E |
39.9x
|
22.0x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
31.6x
|
17.5x
|
| Price / Sales |
11.1x
|
9.1x
|
| Price / FCF |
50.5x
|
35.8x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
-2.1%
|
+14.9%
|
| Gross Margin |
48.7%
|
68.8%
|
| Operating Margin |
29.1%
|
45.6%
|
| Return on Equity |
38.9%
|
29.6%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
0.94% |
| FCF Yield |
1.98%
|
2.8%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Strong Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Applied Materials, Inc. is a leading global provider of semiconductor and display equipment, specializing in materials engineering solutions critical to chip manufacturing. The company benefits from a durable competitive moat supported by its market leadership, innovation engine with over 8,500 patents since 2013, and a strong management team led by CEO Gary E. Dickerson. Despite these strengths,…
Microsoft is the world's largest software company, operating a three-pillar empire across cloud (Azure), productivity (Office 365/Teams), and personal computing (Windows/Xbox). Azure is the second-largest cloud platform globally with 24% market share and growing at 38-39% in constant currency, while Microsoft Cloud revenue crossed $168.9B in FY2025. The stock has dropped 33% from its highs to $37…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
AMAT |
MSFT |
| Zone Low |
$121.56 |
$370.00 |
| Zone High |
$137.77 |
$419.00 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|