APP vs. MSFT: AppLovin vs. Microsoft Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT) both belong to the Software industry, though APP is classified under Application Software while MSFT falls under Systems Software.

Microsoft (MSFT) has more than two decades of public-market history since March 13, 1986, whereas AppLovin (APP) listed on April 15, 2021 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Company profile comparison for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Profile Item	APP	MSFT
Name	AppLovin Corporation Class A Common Stock	Microsoft Corporation Common Stock
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Information Technology	Information Technology
GICS Industry Group	Software & Services	Software & Services
GICS Industry	Software	Software
GICS Sub-Industry	Application Software	Systems Software
Market Capitalization	129.62 billion USD	3,940.41 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	Nasdaq
Listing Date	April 15, 2021	March 13, 1986
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

APP

MSFT

GSPC

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
Total Return (1Y)	-34.71%	10.30%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	116.87%	15.53%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	31.34%	11.01%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

APP

MSFT

GSPC

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

AppLovin (APP) carries a highly aggressive beta of 2.25, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, whereas Microsoft (MSFT) is closer to market-like at 1.03 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Risk profile metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	80.36%	33.91%
Beta (5Y)	2.25	1.03
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-91.90%	-37.15%
Avg. Volume (3M)	5.33M	22.95M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

APP and MSFT are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.49	0.18
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.69	0.28

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both companies show strong equity returns, but AppLovin (APP) at 210.09% is the standout with ROE above its industry range; Microsoft (MSFT) at 34.22% also sits in the top quartile.

APP

Software & Services industry group

210.09%

APP: 210.09%
Max: 53.85%
Q3: 17.90%
Median: 6.59%
Q1: -9.59%
Min: -50.52%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

34.22%

Max: 53.85%
MSFT: 34.22%
Q3: 17.90%
Median: 6.59%
Q1: -9.59%
Min: -50.52%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their ROE against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) at 65.89% keeps the most of each sales dollar — above its industry’s net margin range — and Microsoft (MSFT) at 41.17% also retains a top-quartile share.

APP

Software & Services industry group

65.89%

APP: 65.89%
Max: 41.17%
Q3: 15.28%
Median: 4.63%
Q1: -5.42%
Min: -33.17%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

41.17%

MSFT: 41.17%
Max: 41.17%
Q3: 15.28%
Median: 4.63%
Q1: -5.42%
Min: -33.17%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their net margin against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Before financing and tax, both AppLovin (APP) at 78.22% and Microsoft (MSFT) at 49.76% run unusually efficient core operations — each operating margin clears its industry’s benchmark range.

APP

Software & Services industry group

78.22%

APP: 78.22%
Max: 46.89%
Q3: 17.64%
Median: 8.73%
Q1: -2.13%
Min: -30.45%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

49.76%

MSFT: 49.76%
Max: 46.89%
Q3: 17.64%
Median: 8.73%
Q1: -2.13%
Min: -30.45%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their operating margin against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
ROE (TTM)	210.09%	34.22%
ROA (TTM)	49.57%	14.41%
Net Margin (TTM)	65.89%	41.17%
Operating Margin (TTM)	78.22%	49.76%
Gross Margin (TTM)	88.78%	67.66%

Growth

Revenue Growth

AppLovin (APP) at 69.99% clears its industry range for revenue growth, far stronger top-line momentum than Microsoft (MSFT) at 17.79%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

AppLovin (APP) at 115.23% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Microsoft (MSFT) at 31.60% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for APP.

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
Revenue Growth (YoY)	69.99%	17.79%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	24.84%	16.12%
EPS Growth (YoY)	115.23%	31.60%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	22.86%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Microsoft (MSFT) at 1.23 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while AppLovin (APP) at 3.81 sits above its industry’s typical mid-range — comfortable liquidity, though possibly with more idle current assets relative to peers.

APP

Software & Services industry group

3.81

Max: 5.11
APP: 3.81
Q3: 2.77
Median: 1.67
Q1: 1.01
Min: 0.03

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

1.23

Max: 5.11
Q3: 2.77
Median: 1.67
MSFT: 1.23
Q1: 1.01
Min: 0.03

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their current ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both AppLovin (APP) at 1.07 and Microsoft (MSFT) at 0.28 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

APP

Software & Services industry group

1.07

Max: 2.52
Q3: 1.13
APP: 1.07
Median: 0.40
Q1: 0.07
Min: 0.00

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

0.28

Max: 2.52
Q3: 1.13
Median: 0.40
MSFT: 0.28
Q1: 0.07
Min: 0.00

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
Current Ratio (MRQ)	3.81	1.23
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.07	0.28
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.06	0.34

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Microsoft (MSFT) reports a yield of 0.69%, ranking against industry peers normally.

APP

Software & Services industry group

0.00%

APP: 0.00%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

0.69%

MSFT: 0.69%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Microsoft (MSFT) reports a payout of 19.00%, ranking against industry peers normally.

APP

Software & Services industry group

0.00%

APP: 0.00%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

19.00%

MSFT: 19.00%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	0.69%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	19.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both AppLovin (APP) at 26.34 and Microsoft (MSFT) at 27.69 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

APP

Software & Services industry group

26.34

Max: 112.94
Q3: 60.32
Median: 32.91
APP: 26.34
Q1: 18.77
Min: 6.69

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

27.69

Max: 112.94
Q3: 60.32
Median: 32.91
MSFT: 27.69
Q1: 18.77
Min: 6.69

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both AppLovin (APP) at 17.04 and Microsoft (MSFT) at 11.37 command a richer price per dollar of sales than most peers, sitting in the upper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

APP

Software & Services industry group

17.04

Max: 17.91
APP: 17.04
Q3: 8.78
Median: 4.25
Q1: 2.23
Min: 0.02

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

11.37

Max: 17.91
MSFT: 11.37
Q3: 8.78
Median: 4.25
Q1: 2.23
Min: 0.02

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Microsoft (MSFT) at 8.38 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while AppLovin (APP) at 39.29 prices above its benchmark range — APP looks rich relative to book.

APP

Software & Services industry group

39.29

APP: 39.29
Max: 16.63
Q3: 8.50
Median: 4.30
Q1: 1.92
Min: -3.90

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

8.38

Max: 16.63
Q3: 8.50
MSFT: 8.38
Median: 4.30
Q1: 1.92
Min: -3.90

AppLovin (APP) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	APP	MSFT
P/E Ratio (TTM)	26.34	27.69
P/S Ratio (TTM)	17.04	11.37
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	39.29	8.38
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.87%	0.08%