Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII) vs Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?
As of 2026-11-01, HII is overvalued at $317, with a DCF intrinsic value of $251 and a margin of safety of -26%. MSFT is undervalued at $522, with an intrinsic value of $802 and a margin of safety of 35%. Of the two, MSFT has the wider margin of safety.
Rewards
- ★Free cash flow has grown at a 18.1% CAGR over the past 4 years, demonstrating strong earnings power growth.
- ★PEG ratio of 0.97 suggests the stock is undervalued relative to its growth rate — paying less than 1x for each unit of earnings growth.
- ★Microsoft Corporation has maintained ROIC above 15% for 4 consecutive years, indicating a durable competitive advantage.
- ★Gross margin of 67.7% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
- ★Microsoft Corporation scores 84/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with revenue predictability as the strongest competitive dimension.
Risks
- ⚠Gross margin of 12.7% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
- ⚠FCF yield of 6.4% suggests reasonable valuation assuming continued moderate growth.
- ⚠Insiders have sold $4.5M worth of stock in the past 3 months — significant insider liquidation.
- ⚠FCF yield of 1.7% is below 3%, meaning the market is pricing in substantial future growth to justify the current price.
- ⚠5 insider sales totaling $75.4M with no purchases in the past 3 months — insiders are reducing their exposure.
Key Valuation Metrics
Learn more →Historical Fundamentals
Learn more →Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.
Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.
Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.
$1 Retained Earnings Test
Learn more →> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis
Learn more →Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth
Learn more →What growth rate is the market pricing in at $317?
The market implies +10.7% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.
Standard FCF implies a demanding +7.0%, reflecting heavy growth investment.
What growth rate is the market pricing in at $522?
The market implies +13.0% Owner Earnings growth, below historical trends — potential opportunity.
Standard FCF implies a more demanding +22.5%, reflecting heavy growth investment expected to generate future returns.
Economic Moat Score
Learn more →Narrow moat with revenue predictability as the key competitive advantage. Improving roic consistency would strengthen the moat.
Wide moat driven primarily by revenue predictability. Reinvestment Efficiency is the area most vulnerable to competitive pressure.
Forensic Accounting
Learn more →M-Score Trend
M-Score Trend
Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
Ownership Breakdown
Learn more →High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
Insider Buying Activity
Learn more →Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.
Insider Selling Activity
Learn more →Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.
🎭 Mr. Market's Mood
Learn more →"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"
"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"
Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
⚖️ Buffett Signal
Learn more →The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.
The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.
Frequently Asked Questions: HII vs MSFT
Is Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. or Microsoft Corporation more undervalued in 2026?▼
Based on our discounted cash flow model, MSFT trades at a 34.9% margin of safety (intrinsic value $802 vs. price $522), compared to HII's -26.4% margin of safety (intrinsic $251 vs. $317).
Which stock has a wider economic moat, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. or Microsoft Corporation?▼
MSFT scores 84/100 (Wide moat), while HII scores 57/100 (Narrow moat). The moat score measures competitive advantage durability across ROIC consistency, margin stability, revenue predictability, and reinvestment efficiency.
Is Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. in financial distress?▼
HII's Altman Z-Score of 2.8 places it in the Grey zone, signaling elevated bankruptcy risk. MSFT scores 9.1 (Safe zone). The Altman Z-Score is a five-factor model that predicts insolvency within two years; scores below 1.81 indicate significant distress.
Which company has better free cash flow, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. or Microsoft Corporation?▼
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII) generates a 6.4% free cash flow yield, compared to Microsoft Corporation's 1.7%. A higher FCF yield means the business converts more of its market value into cash that can be returned to shareholders or reinvested.
Which stock has higher return on invested capital, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. or Microsoft Corporation?▼
MSFT earns 22.5% ROIC versus HII's 9.8%. A higher ROIC means the company generates more profit per dollar of capital employed, a hallmark of durable competitive advantage in Buffett-style analysis.
Which dividend is safer, Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc.'s or Microsoft Corporation's?▼
MSFT's dividend earns a safety score of 94/100 (Very Safe), compared to HII's 94/100 (Very Safe). MSFT has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years.