VOL. XCIV, NO. 247

★ WIDE MOAT STOCKS COMPARISON ★

NO ADVICE

Wednesday, December 31, 2025

Stock Comparison

Microsoft Corporation vs VeriSign, Inc.

Compare moat strength, market structure, and segment coverage to understand how each company defends its edge.

Microsoft Corporation

MSFT · Nasdaq Global Select Market

Market cap (USD)$3.6T
SectorTechnology
CountryUS
Data as of2025-12-21
Moat score
84/ 100

Weighted average of segment moat scores, combining moat strength, durability, confidence, market structure, pricing power, and market share.

Full stock profile

Dive deeper into Microsoft Corporation's moat claims, evidence, and risks.

View MSFT analysis

VeriSign, Inc.

VRSN · Nasdaq Global Select Market

Market cap (USD)
SectorTechnology
CountryUS
Data as of2025-12-31
Moat score
100/ 100

Weighted average of segment moat scores, combining moat strength, durability, confidence, market structure, pricing power, and market share.

Full stock profile

Dive deeper into VeriSign, Inc.'s moat claims, evidence, and risks.

View VRSN analysis

Comparison highlights

  • Moat score gap: VeriSign, Inc. leads (100 / 100 vs 84 / 100 for Microsoft Corporation).
  • Segment focus: Microsoft Corporation has 3 segments (42.9% in Productivity and Business Processes); VeriSign, Inc. has 1 segment (100% in Naming Services (.com and .net registry)).
  • Primary market structure: Oligopoly vs Monopoly. Pricing power: Strong vs Strong.
  • Moat breadth: Microsoft Corporation has 9 moat types across 4 domains; VeriSign, Inc. has 4 across 4.

Primary market context

Microsoft Corporation

Productivity and Business Processes

Market

Enterprise productivity & collaboration suites, business applications, and professional network platforms

Geography

Global

Customer

Enterprises, SMBs, consumers, recruiters/advertisers

Role

SaaS platform + professional network

Revenue share

42.9%

VeriSign, Inc.

Naming Services (.com and .net registry)

Market

Registry operator services for .com and .net top-level domains (domain registrations + authoritative DNS resolution)

Geography

Global

Customer

ICANN-accredited domain registrars (wholesale) and, indirectly, registrants

Role

Registry operator / DNS infrastructure provider

Revenue share

100%

Side-by-side metrics

Microsoft Corporation
VeriSign, Inc.
Ticker / Exchange
MSFT - Nasdaq Global Select Market
VRSN - Nasdaq Global Select Market
Market cap (USD)
$3.6T
n/a
Sector
Technology
Technology
HQ country
US
US
Primary segment
Productivity and Business Processes
Naming Services (.com and .net registry)
Market structure
Oligopoly
Monopoly
Market share
n/a
100% (reported)
HHI estimate
n/a
10,000
Pricing power
Strong
Strong
Moat score
84 / 100
100 / 100
Moat domains
Demand, Network, Supply, Legal
Legal, Network, Supply, Financial
Last update
2025-12-21
2025-12-31

Moat coverage

Shared moat types

Operational Excellence

Microsoft Corporation strengths

Suite BundlingData Workflow LockinLong Term ContractsTwo Sided NetworkCapex Knowhow ScaleEcosystem ComplementsDefault OS GatewayContent Rights Currency

VeriSign, Inc. strengths

Concession LicenseDe Facto StandardFloat Prepayment

Segment mix

Microsoft Corporation segments

Full profile >

Productivity and Business Processes

Oligopoly

42.9%

Intelligent Cloud

Oligopoly

37.7%

More Personal Computing

Quasi-Monopoly

19.4%

VeriSign, Inc. segments

Full profile >

Naming Services (.com and .net registry)

Monopoly

100%

Want the full wide moat stocks list?

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Curation & Accuracy

This directory blends AI‑assisted discovery with human curation. Entries are reviewed, edited, and organized with the goal of expanding coverage and sharpening quality over time. Your feedback helps steer improvements (because no single human can capture everything all at once).

Details change. Pricing, features, and availability may be incomplete or out of date. Treat listings as a starting point and verify on the provider’s site before making decisions. If you spot an error or a gap, send a quick note and I’ll adjust.