BRK.A vs. MSFT: Berkshire Hathaway vs. Microsoft Stock Comparison

August 31, 2026

How do Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) 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

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) is classified in the Financials sector (Financial Services), whereas Microsoft (MSFT) belongs to Information Technology (Software & Services) — their GICS classifications point to very different parts of the market.

Company profile comparison for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Profile Item	BRK.A	MSFT
Name	Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Class A	Microsoft Corporation Common Stock
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Financials	Information Technology
GICS Industry Group	Financial Services	Software & Services
GICS Industry	Financial Services	Software
GICS Sub-Industry	Multi-Sector Holdings	Systems Software
Market Capitalization	1,081.75 billion USD	3,813.24 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	March 13, 1986
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

BRK.A

MSFT

GSPC

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) 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

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
Total Return (1Y)	1.56%	0.49%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	11.87%	16.97%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	11.90%	11.92%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

BRK.A

MSFT

GSPC

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) 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

Loading price history…

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

Risk Metrics

Microsoft (MSFT) is heavily traded at around 38.92M shares per day, whereas Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) is thinly traded at only 192 — larger orders in the latter may face more price impact or wider spreads, depending on market conditions.

Risk profile metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	14.27%	32.30%
Beta (5Y)	0.60	1.11
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-25.98%	-37.15%
Avg. Volume (3M)	192	38.92M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

BRK.A and MSFT are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. Each dashed Capital Allocation Line uses that stock's own industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.17	-0.11
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.25	-0.17

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Microsoft (MSFT) at 34.04% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 12.12% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for MSFT.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

12.12%

Max: 48.53%
Q3: 22.35%
Median: 12.81%
BRK.A: 12.12%
Q1: 4.46%
Min: -20.25%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

34.04%

Max: 62.95%
MSFT: 34.04%
Q3: 17.61%
Median: 5.22%
Q1: -14.02%
Min: -54.87%

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their ROE against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

Net Margin (TTM)

Microsoft (MSFT) at 40.31% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 22.30%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

22.30%

Max: 67.68%
Q3: 29.96%
BRK.A: 22.30%
Median: 16.31%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -30.67%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

40.31%

Max: 41.43%
MSFT: 40.31%
Q3: 14.96%
Median: 3.57%
Q1: -6.01%
Min: -35.38%

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their net margin against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Microsoft (MSFT) at 45.11% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 32.56%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

32.56%

Max: 96.23%
Q3: 52.59%
BRK.A: 32.56%
Median: 28.34%
Q1: 11.37%
Min: -46.55%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

45.11%

Max: 47.12%
MSFT: 45.11%
Q3: 15.04%
Median: 4.79%
Q1: -6.90%
Min: -32.77%

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their operating margin against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
ROE (TTM)	12.12%	34.04%
ROA (TTM)	6.01%	14.09%
Net Margin (TTM)	22.30%	40.31%
Operating Margin (TTM)	32.56%	45.11%
Gross Margin (TTM)	--	67.94%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Microsoft (MSFT) at 17.79% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at -3.23% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at -24.78% and Microsoft (MSFT) at 31.60% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
Revenue Growth (YoY)	-3.23%	17.79%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	20.59%	16.12%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-24.78%	31.60%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	22.86%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Microsoft (MSFT) shows current ratio of 1.23; Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) doesn’t get one — Financial Services balance sheets aren’t split into current and non-current buckets, so short-term liquidity there is judged through regulatory measures instead.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

BRK.A: --
Max: --
Q3: --
Median: --
Q1: --
Min: --

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

1.23

Max: 5.39
Q3: 2.83
Median: 1.63
MSFT: 1.23
Q1: 1.02
Min: 0.03

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): BRK.A’s current ratio is not assessed under the Financial Services industry convention, so the chart shows available visual context for MSFT only.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Microsoft (MSFT) shows debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29; for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) the ratio is set aside — in Financial Services, balance-sheet leverage is part of the business model itself, so capital-adequacy measures do the job this ratio does elsewhere.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

BRK.A: --
Max: --
Q3: --
Median: --
Q1: --
Min: --

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

0.29

Max: 2.62
Q3: 1.10
Median: 0.35
MSFT: 0.29
Q1: 0.06
Min: 0.00

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): BRK.A’s debt-to-equity ratio is not assessed under the Financial Services industry convention, so the chart shows available visual context for MSFT only.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
Current Ratio (MRQ)	--	1.23
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	--	0.29
Net Debt / EBITDA	--	0.27

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) 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 0.72%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 16.20%
Q3: 6.48%
Median: 1.42%
BRK.A: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

0.72%

MSFT: 0.72%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their dividend yield against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) 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 19.83%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 219.05%
Q3: 87.87%
Median: 25.19%
BRK.A: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

19.83%

MSFT: 19.83%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their payout ratio against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	0.72%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	19.83%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 12.71 and Microsoft (MSFT) at 28.58 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

12.71

Max: 47.57
Q3: 25.61
Median: 16.38
BRK.A: 12.71
Q1: 10.13
Min: 2.08

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

28.58

Max: 108.92
Q3: 61.11
Median: 32.56
MSFT: 28.58
Q1: 17.02
Min: 0.37

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their P/E ratio against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 2.81 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Microsoft (MSFT) at 11.49 sits in the pricier quartile — MSFT costs more per dollar of sales.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

2.81

Max: 10.51
Q3: 5.11
Median: 2.99
BRK.A: 2.81
Q1: 1.50
Min: -0.63

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

11.49

Max: 21.94
MSFT: 11.49
Q3: 10.45
Median: 4.83
Q1: 2.40
Min: 0.02

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their P/S ratio against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 1.45 and Microsoft (MSFT) at 8.62 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

1.45

Max: 7.79
Q3: 3.77
Median: 1.71
BRK.A: 1.45
Q1: 0.89
Min: -1.05

MSFT

Software & Services industry group

8.62

Max: 20.97
Q3: 10.12
MSFT: 8.62
Median: 4.90
Q1: 2.09
Min: -9.52

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) vs. Microsoft (MSFT): A comparison of their P/B ratio against their respective Financial Services and Software & Services industry group benchmarks.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) and Microsoft (MSFT)
Metric	BRK.A	MSFT
P/E Ratio (TTM)	12.71	28.58
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.81	11.49
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	1.45	8.62
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	--	0.43%