Apple vs Microsoft (AAPL vs MSFT)
Side by side from their SEC filings: revenue, margins, growth, returns and valuation, plus short interest, insider activity and institutional ownership.
Apple is the larger company by revenue ($416.2B vs $331.8B) and market value ($4.7T vs $3.7T). Microsoft has grown revenue faster over the last 4 fiscal years (+67.4% cumulative vs +13.8%). Microsoft runs the higher operating margin (46.8% vs 32.0%). Microsoft trades at the lower trailing P/E (28.2x vs 37.3x).
About Apple
Apple Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories. It also offers related services including advertising, technical support under AppleCare, cloud storage, digital content platforms, and payment services. The company serves consumers, small and mid-sized businesses, education, enterprise, and government markets worldwide.
About Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation develops, licenses, and supports a wide range of software products, services, and devices. Its main offerings include operating systems like Windows, cloud-based services, artificial intelligence solutions, and platform-based ecosystems for developers and users. Microsoft serves both business and consumer markets globally, competing in areas such as personal computing, cloud infrastructure, and AI technologies.
Head to head (AAPL FY2025 vs MSFT FY2026)
| Metric | AAPLFY2025 | MSFTFY2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $416.16B | $331.84B |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | 6.4% | 17.8% |
| Gross margin | 46.9% | 67.9% |
| Operating margin | 32.0% | 46.8% |
| Net margin | 26.9% | 40.3% |
| Net income | $112.01B | $133.75B |
| Diluted EPS | $7.46 | $17.95 |
| FCF margin | 23.7% | 20.2% |
| ROE | 151.9% | 30.2% |
| Long-term debt / equity | 1.06× | 0.07× |
| Market cap | $4.75T | $3.72T |
| P/E | 37.3× | 28.2× |
Fundamentals are from each company’s SEC filings (AAPL FY2025, MSFT FY2026). ROE is net income over fiscal-year-end equity; long-term debt / equity counts non-current term debt only. P/E and market cap are derived from stored market prices, last retrieved on a rolling basis and typically within the past week.
Five-year trend (as reported)
| AAPL by fiscal year | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $365.82B | $394.33B | $383.29B | $391.04B | $416.16B |
| Net income | $94.68B | $99.80B | $97.00B | $93.74B | $112.01B |
| Operating margin | 29.8% | 30.3% | 29.8% | 31.5% | 32.0% |
| MSFT by fiscal year | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $198.27B | $211.91B | $245.12B | $281.72B | $331.84B |
| Net income | $72.74B | $72.36B | $88.14B | $101.83B | $133.75B |
| Operating margin | 42.1% | 41.8% | 44.6% | 45.6% | 46.8% |
Apple and Microsoft use different fiscal calendars (AAPL's FY2025 ended 2025-09-27, MSFT's FY2026 ended 2026-06-30), so their fiscal years are shown separately rather than forced into one timeline.
Peer standing
These companies are ranked against different peer groups (Apple vs 625 Technology companies; Microsoft vs 332 software companies), so each is shown against its own peers rather than on one scale.
Apple
Apple’s return on equity of 151.9% ranks in the 99th percentile of the 540 Technology companies reporting it. Apple’s operating margin of 32.0% ranks in the 94th percentile of the 563 Technology companies reporting it. Apple’s net margin of 26.9% ranks in the 91st percentile of the 577 Technology companies reporting it.
Microsoft
Microsoft’s operating margin of 46.8% ranks in the 98th percentile of the 303 software companies reporting it. Microsoft’s net margin of 40.3% ranks in the 97th percentile of the 307 software companies reporting it. Microsoft’s return on equity of 30.2% ranks in the 87th percentile of the 285 software companies reporting it.
Short interest
| FINRA settlement data | AAPL | MSFT |
|---|---|---|
| Shares sold short | 116.3M | 68.5M |
| Change vs prior settlement | -17.9% | -15.7% |
| Days to cover | 2.53 | 2.05 |
| As of settlement | 2026-08-14 | 2026-08-14 |
Source: FINRA Consolidated Short Interest. FINRA is the owner and source of the FINRA-supplied data; republishing or redistributing it is not permitted. Not presented as a percentage of float. No FINRA endorsement of this product is implied.
Insider activity (last 90 days)
| Form 4 activity (codes P/S) | AAPL | MSFT |
|---|---|---|
| Buys | 0 | 0 |
| Sells | 4 ($1.4M) | 4 ($10.1M) |
Non-derivative purchases (code P) and sales (code S) reported on SEC Form 4, which may be open-market or private (grants, exercises and tax withholding excluded). For context, about 15% of covered companies saw any reported insider purchase (code P) in a 90-day window.
Held by the same investors
17 tracked 13F managers hold both Apple and Microsoft as of their latest quarterly filings: AQR Capital Management, Bridgewater Associates, Citadel Advisors, D. E. Shaw, Dodge & Cox, Giverny Capital, Gotham Asset Management, Harris Associates (Oakmark), Markel Group, Millennium Management, Polen Capital Management, Renaissance Technologies and 5 more. See which superinvestors hold your own portfolio with the smart money checker.
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Data sourced from SEC EDGAR. Figures are as-reported and may be unaudited or restated; verify against the source filings before relying on them. Comparisons are descriptive (higher or lower on a reported figure), not a rating or a recommendation. Informational only. Not investment advice.