Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 82,424 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,568 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 4.3% of Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $30,746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors acquired a new position in Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares in the company, valued at $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week: Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong Azure and cloud performance helped drive a rally of roughly 48% from its June low, with the stock reaching a 10-month high and moving above a technical buy point. A recently formed “golden cross,” in which the 50-day moving average moved above the 200-day average, also supports bullish momentum. Bull v. Bear: MSFT Hits 2026 High, is a New Record Next? Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly in early discussions with Moonshot AI regarding its Kimi K3 model. A potential arrangement could add another AI service to Azure and create a new revenue stream, although negotiations are not finalized. MSFT Stock Alert: Moonshot Could Give Microsoft Another AI Revenue Stream Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s deployment of more than 25 AI agents across its supply chain illustrates early enterprise use cases for agentic AI, including demand forecasting, freight routing and inventory management. Successful internal deployments could support broader adoption of Microsoft’s AI tools. Microsoft Puts 25 AI Agents to Work on Supply Chain Costs Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is spending heavily on AI infrastructure—approximately $175 billion this year—and has reassured employees that data-center investment is intended to support long-term growth. Azure reportedly surpassed $100 billion, while contracted backlog and commercial bookings remain major valuation supports. Microsoft Reassures Employees About AI Data Center Impacts Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s gains have helped lift major indexes, but the strength is concentrated in a few mega-cap technology stocks while small caps and many sectors weaken as bond yields rise. This creates a broader market-risk backdrop despite Microsoft’s relative strength. Dow Jones Futures: Microsoft, Titans Mask Market Weakness Negative Sentiment: One analyst argued that Microsoft’s valuation rerating may be largely complete for now, raising the risk of profit-taking after the recent monthly rally. At the current valuation, further gains may require continued upward revisions to cloud and AI growth expectations. Microsoft: The Rerating Is Probably Over For Now Microsoft Price Performance MSFT opened at $513.53 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $430.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $412.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.81 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. Microsoft’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 EPS for the current year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets MSFT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Microsoft from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Microsoft from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Evercore set a $528.00 price objective on Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $556.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Microsoft currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $560.27.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on MSFT

About Microsoft (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

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Annex Advisory Services LLC cut its stake in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 1.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 235,346 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 3,595 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up approximately 1.5% of Annex Advisory Services LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Annex Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $87,789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $586.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Arete Research lifted their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $515.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Microsoft from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, UBS Group set a $525.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $560.27.

Read Our Latest Analysis on MSFT Insider Activity In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219 over the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Microsoft Stock Up 1.7% Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $513.53 on Friday. Microsoft Corporation has a 52-week low of $349.20 and a 52-week high of $553.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.81 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.59, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $430.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $412.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The company had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.65 EPS. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.

Microsoft News Roundup Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s strong Azure and cloud performance helped drive a rally of roughly 48% from its June low, with the stock reaching a 10-month high and moving above a technical buy point. A recently formed “golden cross,” in which the 50-day moving average moved above the 200-day average, also supports bullish momentum. Bull v. Bear: MSFT Hits 2026 High, is a New Record Next? Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly in early discussions with Moonshot AI regarding its Kimi K3 model. A potential arrangement could add another AI service to Azure and create a new revenue stream, although negotiations are not finalized. MSFT Stock Alert: Moonshot Could Give Microsoft Another AI Revenue Stream Positive Sentiment: Microsoft’s deployment of more than 25 AI agents across its supply chain illustrates early enterprise use cases for agentic AI, including demand forecasting, freight routing and inventory management. Successful internal deployments could support broader adoption of Microsoft’s AI tools. Microsoft Puts 25 AI Agents to Work on Supply Chain Costs Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is spending heavily on AI infrastructure—approximately $175 billion this year—and has reassured employees that data-center investment is intended to support long-term growth. Azure reportedly surpassed $100 billion, while contracted backlog and commercial bookings remain major valuation supports. Microsoft Reassures Employees About AI Data Center Impacts Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft’s gains have helped lift major indexes, but the strength is concentrated in a few mega-cap technology stocks while small caps and many sectors weaken as bond yields rise. This creates a broader market-risk backdrop despite Microsoft’s relative strength. Dow Jones Futures: Microsoft, Titans Mask Market Weakness Negative Sentiment: One analyst argued that Microsoft’s valuation rerating may be largely complete for now, raising the risk of profit-taking after the recent monthly rally. At the current valuation, further gains may require continued upward revisions to cloud and AI growth expectations. Microsoft: The Rerating Is Probably Over For Now About Microsoft (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

See Also Five stocks we like better than Microsoft 3 Financial Stocks Positioned for the Fed’s Next Move After Jackson Hole IREN’s AI Pivot Looks Real, But the Market Wanted a Faster Payoff After Earnings Boeing’s $131B F-15 Win: Mach 1 Momentum or Just Altitude? Okta Stock Surges 29%—Is $200 the Next Stop?

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Microsoft delivered exceptional Q4 results, with Azure annual revenue surpassing $100 billion and growth accelerating to 43% year-over-year. MSFT funds its AI and cloud build-out entirely from robust free cash flows, distinguishing itself from peers facing negative or weaker cash generation. Cloud gross margins have declined for four quarters, and management forecasts modest operating margin compression in FY27, with stabilization catalysts emerging.

Microsoft (MSFT +1.68%) has been nearly dead money so far in 2026. It's up around 4% year to date, but only thanks to a surge in recent days and months. Prior to the company reporting its earnings results for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026 (which ended June 30), the stock was down by more than 20% for the year. That quarterly report jump-started Microsoft's stock, but it's still down by more than 5% from the all-time high it established last year around this time.

Can Microsoft reach a new all-time high before 2026 is over? I think it can, and it's all because of Azure.

Image source: Getty Images.

Microsoft's cloud revenue growth is impressive Microsoft is one of the big four hyperscalers, and it has spent hundreds of billions of dollars in recent years on AI data centers. While it's not the biggest spender of the four, it has still been laying out a ton on capital expenditures, and the fruits of those investments are starting to show up in its results. Azure, Microsoft's cloud computing platform, saw revenue growth of 43% year over year in fiscal Q4.

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As more of Microsoft's new data centers come online, Azure's revenue will rise due to increased supply. There's a ton of demand out there right now for cloud computing power, and with Azure being one of the largest cloud computing providers -- it boasts a 21% market share -- it will benefit.

Microsoft's Copilot product is also being widely adopted, with over 30 million paid seats. All of this shows that Microsoft's AI plans are working out, which suggests that it's only a matter of time before the stock rises to a new all-time high.

Additionally, on a forward price-to-earnings basis, Microsoft's stock is trading below where it normally does. For the past three years, Microsoft has averaged a valuation of about 29 times forward earnings. Now, it trades for 25.6.

MSFT PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts.

If all Microsoft did was rise from its current valuation to its average one, the stock would rise by more than 10%, which would put it at a new all-time high. So, I think it's well within Microsoft's grasp to achieve a new record share price before 2026 is over, but is that a good enough reason to buy the stock?

Microsoft is a solid AI stock pick, but I think there are better ones out there. The time to buy Microsoft was in July, not now. I think there are several other stocks that are growing faster and are more attractive than Microsoft, and even though it's in line to set a new all-time high, I'm not sure whether it can deliver impressive returns after that. As a result, I'm passing on Microsoft and looking at other top AI stock picks instead.

Key Takeaways ServiceNow AI ACV topped $1B in Q2 2026, while net new AI ACV rose more than 40% sequentially.Agentic AI production customers rose ninefold, while $1M-plus AI deals tripled year over year.AI-native SKUs drive 20-30% price uplifts as non-seat-based business hits 50% of net new sales. ServiceNow (NOW - Free Report) is benefiting from accelerating adoption and monetization of its agentic artificial intelligence (AI) portfolio as enterprises increasingly automate complex workflows across IT, customer service, employee services and security. This momentum is strengthening NOW’s position in enterprise AI and enhancing its competitive standing against Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) and Salesforce (CRM - Free Report) . ServiceNow AI annual contract value (ACV) crossed $1 billion in the second quarter of 2026, while AI net new ACV increased more than 40% sequentially. Management remains on track to exceed its $1.5 billion AI ACV target by the end of 2026.

Agentic AI deployment is broadening rapidly across ServiceNow’s installed base. The number of customers running Agentic AI in production increased ninefold over the past nine months, while the percentage of renewal customers purchasing Agentic AI for the first time doubled both sequentially and year over year. Deals incorporating five or more ServiceNow AI products grew 5.5 times year over year, resulting in a tripling of $1 million-plus AI deals. The company is already tracking ahead of its long-term target for AI to contribute 30% of ACV by 2030, strengthening visibility into future consumption growth.

Monetization is benefiting from new AI-native Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) and a broader pricing model. Deal volume among first-time Agentic AI buyers increased more than 45% year over year, while upgrades to new AI-native SKUs are generating price uplifts within ServiceNow’s targeted 20-30% framework. ServiceNow  noted that 50% of net new business is already non-seat-based, reducing dependence on traditional seat expansion as autonomous agents become more prevalent. The company is preparing additional AI-native offerings, including a conversational service-desk experience with no tickets and AI-coded automation, which management said could expand its total addressable market.

The company is demonstrating tangible productivity and cross-selling benefits from autonomous AI. In the second quarter of 2026, more than 40 customers were using Level 1 Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) AI specialists, which were resolving roughly 80-85% of service requests without human interaction, with some requests falling from two days to about 20 minutes. AI adoption is driving demand for adjacent products. EmployeeWorks deal volume increased more than 150% quarter over quarter, RaptorDB Pro deal volume rose 80% year over year, and Workflow Data Fabric appeared in 17 of NOW’s top 20 deals. AI Control Tower, Otto, Autonomous Workforce, Context Engine and Action Fabric further extend governance, orchestration and autonomous actions across enterprise workflows.

NOW Faces Tough CompetitionMicrosoft and Salesforce are intensifying competitive pressure. Microsoft reported its fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results on July 29, 2026, highlighting more than 100,000 Foundry customers and nearly 40 million agents registered through Agent 365 across tens of thousands of companies. Microsoft 365 Copilot exceeded 30 million paid seats, while the company is shifting toward seat-plus-consumption pricing. Usage-based customer-service credit consumption increased fourfold sequentially, while GitHub Copilot revenues accelerated more than 60% quarter over quarter.

Salesforce is similarly strengthening Agentforce. In its second-quarter fiscal 2027 results reported on Aug. 26, 2026, Agentforce ARR exceeded $1.5 billion, while Agentforce and Data 360 ARR reached nearly $3.9 billion. Salesforce is expanding AI monetization through premium SKUs and consumption-based offerings. Separately, on Feb. 26, 2026, Salesforce said more than 180 organizations had selected Agentforce IT Service, highlighting the growing competitive pressure on ServiceNow in IT service workflows.

NOW’s Share Price Performance, Valuation & EstimatesShares of ServiceNow have declined 17.9% year to date against the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector’s 15.4% growth.

NOW’s Stock Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

NOW shares are trading at a premium, with a forward 12-month price/earnings ratio of 26.98X compared with the broader sector’s 20.82X. ServiceNow has a Value Score of D.

NOW’s Valuation
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NOW’s 2026 earnings is currently pegged at $1.03 per share, unchanged over the past 30 days, suggesting 7.29% year-over-year growth.

Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT is seeing enterprise customers move beyond artificial intelligence experimentation toward broader production deployments centered on governance, scalable infrastructure and measurable business outcomes, according to Bill Duff, corporate vice president and CFO of Global Commercial Sales and Marketing, speaking at the Deutsche Bank Technology Conference.

When Bank of America chief investment strategist Michael Hartnett pinned the "Magnificent Seven" name on a group of megacap companies back in 2023, those giants were in fact the most dominant tech stocks in the market. In order of their market caps today, they are:

Nvidia (NVDA -4.58%) Apple (AAPL +1.63%) Alphabet (GOOG +1.53%) (GOOGL +1.74%) Microsoft (MSFT +1.68%) Amazon (AMZN +3.97%) Meta Platforms (META +1.21%) Tesla (TSLA -1.71%) These seven companies have remained dominant, but other tech players have risen into powerful positions since this grouping was formulated.

One that many investors are curious about is Space Exploration Technologies (SPCX +0.45%), better known as SpaceX. SpaceX went public in June, and is already making waves with its rapidly growing businesses and exciting technology.

If a Wall Street guru like Hartnett was looking to pick a fresh seven-stock group of tech powerhouses that could accurately be described as leading Wall Street now, which current Magnificent Seven stock might get kicked out to make room for SpaceX? The answer may surprise you.

Image source: Getty Images.

Here are the six that would stay The knee-jerk reaction would be to kick Tesla out, as it has struggled in recent years due to falling margins and inconsistent sales volumes. It's also the smallest by market cap now. However, I think Tesla is still an important member of the Magnificent Seven, as it gives the group exposure to a different consumer segment. If Tesla can fully deploy full self-driving capabilities for its electric vehicles, it will contribute a unique spin to the Magnificent Seven, making it worthy of remaining in the group.

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I'd also keep Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, and Microsoft. These four companies are staples in the group and give it exposure to both consumer and business spending trends.

Nvidia, as the largest company in the world, is the closest stock in the group to an AI pure-play pick, and is still achieving phenomenal growth.

That leaves just one stock in position to get the boot: Meta Platforms.

SpaceX and Meta Platforms have a business in common Meta Platforms and SpaceX actually have a fair bit of business model overlap. Meta Platforms' operations are mostly centered around its social media platforms and the advertising revenue it derives from them. Meta is also sinking billions of dollars into its AI capabilities, looking to release consumer products like glasses that can take AI from the computer screen to the real world. While its AI endeavors are exciting, Meta really doesn't have anything to show for them right now.

SpaceX is doing a lot of the same things. It has a social media platform, X (formerly known as Twitter), thanks to xAI's acquisition of X and then SpaceX's acquisition of xAI. 

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xAI also has the Grok large language model, which competes against some of Meta's models. This places Meta in direct competition with SpaceX, but there are some other businesses that SpaceX brings to the table that aren't currently represented through the tech companies in the Magnificent Seven.

It has a satellite internet connectivity business thanks to its Starlink service, and also has a rocket launching unit. None of these are currently represented in the Magnificent Seven, but both are exciting parts of society today that could be even bigger in the future. If SpaceX can build a viable space transportation business, it would easily be as important a business as any in the Magnificent Seven, and because it covers Meta's bases, it would be a solid replacement.

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If Meta can deliver a solid AI glasses business with a thriving subscription model and a must-have product, then I think Meta could make a case to remain included in a "new" Magnificent Seven over Apple, as the iPhone maker's technology launches have been fairly stagnant over the past few years. We'll see how the Magnificent Seven progresses over the next few years. Still, if SpaceX continues on its current trajectory, then there may be a case to define a new group of tech sector leaders that includes it by the end of the decade.

Keithen Drury has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Ken Griffin is one of the best-known investors in the world, having founded the hedge fund Citadel Advisors in 1990 and turnng it into one of the world's largest investment firms. Citadel currently has about $77 billion in assets under management and is one of the most profitable hedge funds of all time based on net gains since inception.

Citadel has a vast portfolio with more than 6,500 holdings, so it's interesting to get a glimpse of which companies it's most bullish on and which it's selling. One thing that I'm struck by from the most recent Form 13F with the Securities and Exchange Commission is a shift in Griffin's artificial intelligence (AI) investing strategy.

Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin. Image source: Getty Images.

Griffin sold 6.8 million shares of Nvidia stock in the second quarter, lowering Citadel's exposure by 36%. And he sold nearly 11% of his Broadcom stock (356,000 shares) and 4 million shares of Micron Technology (87% of Citadel's shares).

In the same quarter, he added to Citadel's position in two key AI stocks that are proving to be early winners in the "show-me" phase of the AI build-out. Those companies are Amazon (AMZN +3.97%) and Microsoft (MSFT +1.68%), both of which are top five holdings in Citadel's portfolio.

Let's look at what Amazon and Microsoft are doing well and possibly why they've attracted Griffin's attention.

Citadel Top Five Holdings

Percentage of Portfolio

Shares Owned

Value

Q2 Activity

iShares Core S&P 500

7.6%

17.7 million

$13.2 billion

Purchased 13.6 million shares

Amazon

1.49%

10.9 million

$2.6 billion

Purchased 2.8 million shares

Nvidia

1.36%

11.8 million

$2.4 billion

Sold 6.8 million shares

Apple

1.21%

7.3 million

$2.1 billion

Bought 2.1 million shares

Microsoft

0.81%

3.8 million

$1.4 billion

Bought 1.1 million shares

Data source: Hedgefollow.com. Data as of June 30, 2026. 

Amazon's AI investments are paying off I'll confess -- I wasn't hugely bullish on Amazon at the beginning of the year. I ranked it near the bottom of my list of best "Magnificent Seven" stocks to buy because I thought the skimpy profit margins on the e-commerce side of the business would drag Amazon stock down this year.

But Jeff Bezos and Andy Jassy showed they know what they're doing. Amazon Web Services recorded its fastest growth in more than four years, and the company's AI business topped an annual run rate of $25 billion. In addition, Amazon's chips business, which includes custom-built Trainium AI chips that Amazon is using as an alternative to Nvidia GPUs, also achieved a $25 billion annual run rate.

Amazon's revenue in the quarter topped $200 billion, up nearly 20% from a year ago, and AWS generated $16.6 billion in operating income, which was up from $10.2 billion a year ago.

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Microsoft is building an AI powerhouse while staying cash-positive One of the biggest challenges for big tech companies right now is paying billions for data centers, hardware, and connectivity to build out AI infrastructure without going deep into debt. Major hyperscalers have committed to spending $760 billion this year and are expected to increase that to more than $1 trillion next year.

Microsoft is one of those spending a lot -- it projected it would pay $175 billion this calendar year -- but so far, it's managing to thread the needle. The company reported in its most recent earnings report (for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026 ended June 30) that it had $19.6 billion in free cash flow. Even better, the company expects to remain free cash flow positive in fiscal 2027.

Overall revenue was $90 billion, up 18% from a year ago, and Microsoft Azure topped $100 billion in revenue for the fiscal year for the first time.

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Citadel's AI bets are paying off Even though Griffin and Citadel sold Nvidia, Micron, and Broadcom in the quarter, Griffin is far from bearish on AI in general. After all, Nvidia is still a top-five holding.

However, Amazon and Microsoft's success in their most recent quarters shows that the market is rewarding companies that are demonstrating results in their AI spending. And Citadel's Q2 purchases have paid off nicely, as Amazon and Microsoft are up 15% and 27%, respectively, since reporting earnings in late July.

Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) is already running AI workloads on IREN’s infrastructure. NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) has now validated another layer of its platform. But according to co-CEO Daniel Roberts, those milestones point to a bigger story: in the AI infrastructure race, owning the entire stack — not just the chips — could become the industry’s defining advantage.

• IREN shares are sliding. What’s weighing on IREN shares?

Speaking on IREN’s fiscal 2026 earnings call, Roberts argued that the company’s strategy extends far beyond acquiring Nvidia GPUs. Instead, he said IREN is building a vertically integrated AI infrastructure platform spanning power, data centers, compute and software — an approach he believes creates more value than relying on third-party providers for critical pieces of the stack.

Microsoft and Nvidia Reinforce IREN’s AI Stack StrategyIREN highlighted a series of milestones that underscore that strategy.

The company said Horizon 1 — the first of four planned 50-megawatt AI cloud deployments under its Microsoft contract — was delivered during the quarter. Roberts also noted that the company’s 2026 contracted annual recurring revenue has reached $4 billion, with $1 billion already operational, while another $700 million of ARR tied to its Nvidia Cloud contract is expected to ramp in 2027.

On the software side, Roberts pointed to another milestone announced alongside the earnings release.

“Just today, Mirantis was named an inaugural Nvidia Certified Hypervisor. So we’ve now got Nvidia validation at the software layer as well as the hardware.”

Mirantis, which IREN recently acquired, enables the company to offer managed AI cloud services alongside bare-metal GPU infrastructure, expanding the range of customers it can serve.

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IREN CEO Says Owning Every Layer Creates More ValueFor Roberts, the Microsoft deployment and Nvidia software certification illustrate a broader investment thesis rather than isolated achievements.

“Why own all three?” he asked, referring to infrastructure, GPUs and software.

“Because each layer makes the one underneath it worth more. A grid connection is worth more with a data center on it. Worth more again with GPUs inside. More again with services wrapped around the customer.”

He contrasted IREN’s approach with much of the broader AI infrastructure market.

“Most of this market rents at least one of those layers; we own the entire stack.”

Management argued that vertical integration gives IREN greater flexibility to serve different customer types, from hyperscalers seeking bare-metal GPU clusters to enterprise AI developers that require managed cloud services and orchestration software.

The Mirantis acquisition also opens the door to new offerings such as on-demand AI compute and managed services, complementing the company’s long-term cloud infrastructure contracts.

What Investors Should WatchThe AI infrastructure story has largely centered on access to Nvidia’s latest chips. IREN’s latest earnings call suggests management believes the competitive landscape is shifting toward a broader question: who owns the infrastructure surrounding those GPUs.

That thesis is now supported by tangible milestones. Microsoft has begun taking delivery under its AI cloud agreement, Nvidia has validated IREN’s software layer through Mirantis, and management says each additional layer strengthens the economics of the one below it.

For investors, the next test will be whether that vertically integrated model translates into sustained customer growth, expanding margins and higher-value AI cloud contracts as demand continues to scale.

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Photo by T. Schneider via Shutterstock

© 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Azure just crossed $100 billion and commercial bookings are stacking up at a pace that redefines what valuation ceiling even means for a company this size. The math toward an unprecedented market cap milestone is closer than most investors realize.

Microsoft is once again flirting with mega-cap history. With a market capitalization of $3.74 trillion and Azure now a $100 billion business, the path to a $5 trillion valuation is now a math problem.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) trades at $503.92 as I write this. Our 24/7 Wall St. price target for Microsoft is $599.92, implying 18.9% upside over the next 12 months. That would push the market cap right to the doorstep of $5 trillion. Our recommendation is buy, with high confidence at 90%.

24/7 Wall St. Price Target Summary Metric Value Current Price $503.92 24/7 Wall St. Price Target $599.92 Upside 18.9% Recommendation BUY Confidence Level 90% A Blowout Fiscal Year Reset the Story MSFT is up 27.81% over the past month and 3.29% year to date, recovering from an early-2026 drawdown that briefly took shares below $400. The 52-week range runs from $348.54 to $549.20.

The catalyst for the rebound was the July 29 earnings report: Q4 FY26 revenue of $90.01 billion (up 17.75%), non-GAAP EPS of $4.74 beating by 11.81%, and Azure growth of 43%. Commercial RPO ballooned to $678 billion, up 84%, giving investors unprecedented forward visibility.

Why Bulls See a Breakout Ahead The bull case is straightforward: demand exceeds supply. Amy Hood said flatly, “Demand continues to exceed available supply.” Microsoft guided Q1 FY27 Azure growth to roughly 45% in constant currency. Microsoft 365 Copilot now has 30 million paid seats, with net additions more than doubling sequentially.

GitHub Copilot has 50 million users, and its revenue accelerated over 60% quarter over quarter after the shift to usage-based billing. Our bull-case scenario points to $625.15, a 23.9% return that would clear the $5 trillion mark decisively.

What Could Go Wrong The bear case centers on capital intensity. FY26 CapEx hit $115.95 billion, and free cash flow fell 6.46%. More Personal Computing revenue declined 4%. Insider activity is characterized as selling.

Bulls will counter that Hood explicitly framed CapEx as flexible, noting that “if the demand environment changes, you just slow down” the short-lived GPU and CPU spend that drives most of the outlay. Our bear case sits at $514.05, essentially flat.

How Microsoft Compares to Alphabet and Amazon Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is the sharpest hyperscaler valuation contrast. Google Cloud grew 82% in Q2 2026, faster than Azure, yet Alphabet trades at a P/E of just 15 versus Microsoft’s 28. Alphabet already sits at a $4.18 trillion market cap. That gap suggests Microsoft carries a premium for enterprise stickiness, but it also caps how much multiple expansion can carry MSFT to $5 trillion.

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) sits at a $2.76 trillion market cap with AWS growing 37% at a 39.4% operating margin. Amazon’s P/E of 36 and price-to-free-cash-flow of 365 make Microsoft’s multiples look reasonable given MSFT’s 46.78% operating margin.

Company P/E Operating Margin Microsoft 28 46.78% Alphabet 15 32.03% Amazon 36 11.16% The peer set makes our $599.92 target look reasonable rather than aggressive.

Microsoft Price Prediction 2026-2030 Our 24/7 Wall St. price target is $599.92, a buy at 90% confidence. The tipping factor is the $678 billion RPO backlog, which converts supply constraint into visible revenue.

The bullish thesis holds if Azure sustains 40%+ growth into FY27 as guided. Caution is warranted if CapEx crosses $150 billion without matching bookings.

Year 24/7 Wall St. Price Target 2026 $545.22 2027 $606.30 2028 $671.50 2029 $732.01 2030 $825.32 These projections assume Microsoft sustains double-digit revenue growth and disciplined AI infrastructure returns. Significant deviation could come from AI monetization outperformance or a broader hyperscaler CapEx reset (the same buildout that powers our free report on seven non-chip stocks riding the AI infrastructure wave).

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) . Shares have added about 12% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

But investors have to be wondering, will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Microsoft due for a pullback? Well, first let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent drivers for Microsoft Corporation before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.

Microsoft Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates as Cloud and AI Drive ResultsMicrosoft reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings of $4.74 per share on a non-GAAP basis (excluding OpenAI investment impacts), which increased 23% on a year-over-year basis (up 23% in constant currency). The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 12.59%. On a GAAP basis, earnings per share were $4.81, up 32% year over year.

Revenues of $90 billion increased 18% year over year and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.93%. At cc, revenues grew 17% year over year, reflecting continued strength in cloud and AI demand.

Results for the quarter included several discrete items relative to the guidance Microsoft provided on April 29, 2026, which together added 27 cents to earnings per share. These included a $3.2 billion gain tied to Microsoft's investment in Anthropic and lower-than-expected costs associated with the company's first-ever Voluntary Retirement Program, partially offset by severance expense and impairment charges in the Xbox business.

Microsoft Cloud revenues totaled $59.3 billion, up 27% year over year. Commercial remaining performance obligation reached $678 billion, up 84% year over year, with sequential growth driven largely by commitments from customers other than AI model developers.

MSFT's Q4 Segment PerformanceProductivity & Business Processes

The Productivity & Business Processes segment generated $37.8 billion in revenues, which grew 14% year over year (14% in cc).

Microsoft 365 Commercial cloud revenues increased 14% on a reported basis, or 16% when adjusted for a prior-year comparable that had benefited from two points of in-period revenue recognition.

Microsoft 365 Consumer cloud revenues rose 24% (22% in cc). LinkedIn revenues increased 12% (10% in cc). Dynamics 365 revenues grew 13% (12% in cc).

Operating income for the segment rose to $21.9 billion from $19 billion a year earlier, representing an increase of about 15%.

Intelligent Cloud

The Intelligent Cloud segment contributed $39.3 billion in revenues, up 32% year over year (31% in cc).

Azure and other cloud services revenues surged 43% year over year, with growth accelerating from the prior quarter on continued demand across workloads.

Operating income for the segment increased to $16 billion from $12.1 billion a year earlier, up roughly 31%.

More Personal Computing

The More Personal Computing segment generated $12.9 billion in revenues, down 4% year over year (down 5% in cc), pressured by weaker hardware and gaming content revenues, partly offset by growth in search advertising.

Windows OEM and Devices revenues declined 7%. Xbox content and services revenues fell 10%, while Search advertising revenues, excluding traffic acquisition costs, rose 10% (9% in cc).

Operating income for the segment declined to $2.7 billion from $3.2 billion a year earlier, down about 14%, reflecting severance and impairment charges tied to the Xbox business.

MSFT's Notable Developments in Q4Microsoft continued expanding its AI and cloud infrastructure during the quarter, adding new data center capacity across multiple continents to support growing demand.

The company disclosed plans to extend the estimated useful life of its data center and office buildings to 25 years from 15 years starting in fiscal 2027, a change that will affect future depreciation and lease accounting. More future data center capacity is also expected to be structured as operating leases rather than finance leases going forward.

Microsoft 365 Copilot paid seats surpassed 30 million, with net seat additions more than doubling on a sequential basis during the quarter.

On the leadership side, Microsoft named a LinkedIn executive to lead the professional networking business going forward. The company also introduced a new, more cost-efficient AI coding model during the quarter and lowered Xbox Game Pass subscription prices.

Management indicated it is resetting decisions across Xbox content, platform and operations, with an expectation for the gaming business to return to growth in fiscal 2027.

Microsoft also highlighted continued investment in AI-driven cybersecurity capabilities, describing a multi-model, agentic approach to threat detection and response that combines smaller, efficient models for the bulk of routine tasks with larger frontier models for more complex cases.

MSFT's Financial Performance in Q4Gross margin reached $60.5 billion, up about 15% year over year.

Total operating expenses increased to $19.9 billion from $18.1 billion, up roughly 10%, driven by continued investment in research and development, AI talent and data. Research and development expenses were $10 billion, sales and marketing were $7.6 billion, and general and administrative expenses were $2.3 billion.

Operating income increased 18% year over year (18% in cc) to $40.6 billion. Net income reached $35.8 billion, up 31% on a GAAP basis; on a non-GAAP basis excluding OpenAI-related impacts, net income was $35.3 billion, up 22% (22% in cc).

Other income and expense, net, was a positive $3.4 billion in the quarter, compared with a negative $1.7 billion a year earlier, aided by net gains on investments and derivatives.

MSFT's Q4 Capital Expenditure and InfrastructureCash paid for additions to property and equipment was $35.8 billion in the quarter. Including finance leases, total capital expenditures and finance lease additions rose sharply year over year as the company continued to build out AI and cloud capacity.

Cash flow from operations totaled $55.4 billion, up about 30% year over year, driven by strong cloud billings and collections.

As of June 30, 2026, Microsoft maintained total cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $76.8 billion compared with $94.6 billion a year earlier. Long-term debt (including current portion) was $31.1 billion.

Microsoft returned $10.2 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases during the fiscal fourth quarter.

MSFT's OpenAI Partnership UpdateThe fiscal fourth quarter reflected net gains from investments in OpenAI of $480 million, adding 7 cents to earnings per share. This compares with the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, when net losses from OpenAI investments decreased net income and earnings per share by $1.575 billion and 21 cents, respectively.

These OpenAI-related impacts have historically created volatility in reported GAAP results, leading the company to provide non-GAAP measures excluding these effects to help investors better understand operational performance.

MSFT's Q1 2027 OutlookFor the first quarter of fiscal 2027, Microsoft expects total company revenues between $89.85 billion and $90.95 billion, suggesting growth of roughly 16% to 17%.

The Intelligent Cloud segment is expected to generate revenues between $40.95 billion and $41.25 billion. The Productivity and Business Processes segment is expected to generate revenues between $36.7 billion and $37.0 billion.

Foreign currency is expected to reduce total revenue growth by less than 1 point in the first quarter. Excluding any impact from OpenAI investments, other income and expense is expected to be roughly negative $100 million, as interest income is more than offset by interest expense, including payments tied to data center finance leases. The effective tax rate for the quarter is expected to be approximately 20%.

Capital expenditures are expected to exceed $50 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2027, reflecting both continued infrastructure investment and the impact of the lease reclassification tied to the useful-life change for data centers and office buildings. For fiscal 2027, Microsoft expects capital expenditures of roughly $175 billion under the updated accounting treatment, while underlying investment levels for calendar 2026 remain unchanged from prior guidance.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?In the past month, investors have witnessed a upward trend in fresh estimates.

VGM ScoresCurrently, Microsoft has a nice Growth Score of B, though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with an F. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock has a score of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

OutlookEstimates have been trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Microsoft has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry PlayerMicrosoft is part of the Zacks Computer - Software industry. Over the past month, Pegasystems (PEGA - Free Report) , a stock from the same industry, has gained 19.5%. The company reported its results for the quarter ended June 2026 more than a month ago.

Pegasystems reported revenues of $420.72 million in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +9.4%. EPS of $0.35 for the same period compares with $0.28 a year ago.

For the current quarter, Pegasystems is expected to post earnings of $0.48 per share, indicating a change of +60% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate remained unchanged over the last 30 days.

Pegasystems has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of B.

The 14% trailing-month rally in Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT | MSFT Price Prediction) stock looks impressive when stacked against a year that barely moved.

Americké akciové trhy v pátek zakončují týden v opatrnějším režimu. Po výrazném růstu technologických akcií z předchozího dne se investoři soustředili na projev předsedy Federálního rezervního systému Kevina Warsh(e) v Jackson Hole a na další vývoj americké měnové politiky.

Podle dostupných údajů index S&P 500 během pátečního obchodování oslabil přibližně o 0,3 %, Dow Jones ztratil kolem 0,1 % a technologický Nasdaq odepsal zhruba 0,5 %. Trh tak část zisků z předchozího dne odevzdal.

Hlavním impulzem pro dnešní vývoj byl projev Kevina Warshe na sympoziu v Jackson Hole. Šéf Fedu zdůraznil, že cenová stabilita zůstává klíčovou povinností centrální banky a že inflace je stále příliš vysoká. Zároveň nedal trhu jednoznačný příslib dalšího vývoje sazeb, čímž ponechal prostor pro případné zvýšení sazeb v září.

Reakce byla výraznější na dluhopisovém trhu. Výnos desetiletého amerického státního dluhopisu vzrostl přibližně z 4,67 % na 4,72 %. Trh následně zvýšil odhad pravděpodobnosti zářijového zvýšení sazeb. Vyšší výnosy jsou obecně méně příznivé pro růstové a technologické akcie, jejichž valuace jsou citlivější na cenu peněz.

Pozornost investorů zůstává také u Nvidie. Společnost ve čtvrtek zveřejnila velmi silné výsledky a výhled, což pomohlo technologickému sektoru k výraznému růstu. V pátek však Nvidia část zisku odevzdala a její akcie klesly přibližně o 4 %.

Vývoj v polovodičovém sektoru ukazuje, že investoři jsou po mimořádném růstu AI akcií stále citlivější na ocenění. Marvell Technology například oslabil přibližně o 10 % navzdory tomu, že výsledky překonaly očekávání. Trh tak začíná více řešit, zda vysoká očekávání spojená s AI dokážou ospravedlnit současné valuace.

Páteční vývoj zároveň nebyl plošným výprodejem technologií. Některé velké technologické společnosti naopak rostly. Amazon například podle dostupných údajů přidal přes 3 % a Microsoft zhruba 2 %, zatímco Nvidia a ASML oslabovaly. To naznačuje spíše rotaci uvnitř velkých technologických titulů než odchod investorů z celého sektoru.

Mezi nejvýraznější pohyby dne patřil propad PayPalu, jehož akcie ztrácely zhruba 12 % po zprávách, že potenciální kupující odstoupili od plánů na převzetí společnosti

Páteční pokles Wall Street zatím nepůsobí jako změna dlouhodobého trendu. Spíše jde o kombinaci vybírání zisků po silném růstu Nvidie, vyšších výnosů amerických dluhopisů a nejistoty ohledně dalšího kroku Fedu.

'Mad Money' host Jim Cramer talks the backlash to the AI boom.

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Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. George Chan/Getty Images Microsoft employees aren't just comparing salaries this year, they're comparing how much AI they use.

An internal spreadsheet viewed by Business Insider shows hundreds of employees voluntarily reporting not only their raises, bonuses, and stock awards, but also the dollar value of the AI tools they used over the past month. Microsoft is offering employees an internal tool to track their AI usage and spending.

The figures offer a rare glimpse into how AI is being used inside Microsoft as the company races rivals, including Meta, Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic, to build AI products.

As the company spends hundreds of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure and pushes employees to weave AI into their daily work, the spreadsheet shows how usage varies dramatically across teams, from just a few dollars a month to tens of thousands. It also suggests that, at least for now, heavier AI use isn't translating into bigger raises, bonuses, or promotions.

Microsoft isn't alone in trying to understand how employees use AI. Across Big Tech, companies are increasingly tracking AI consumption as they spend billions building models and infrastructure.

What are the real-life consequences of AI?

New to this year's spreadsheet was a column asking employees to self-report their "AI $ Usage Per Month" using the internal tool, which shows the dollar amount of their AI usage over the last 28 days. A Microsoft spokesperson said the AI usage tracking tool is still in early testing.

The document had nearly 600 entries from US employees when Business Insider analyzed the data, showing how much the employees say they received this year in base pay, raises, cash bonuses, and stock awards. About 350 of them had reported their AI usage at the time.

Of those reported, the median AI usage amount was about $300 over 28 days. The highest reported figure was $28,000 from an employee in the Microsoft Customer and Partner Solutions organization.

Business Insider's analysis excluded levels and teams with few entries. The data is self-reported and may contain errors.

Self-reported AI usage among Microsoft employeesOrgNo. of entriesMedian AI usage, last 28 daysRangeAzure33$241$1 to $7,500Cloud + AI107$325$1 to $15,000CoreAI14$975$40 to $16,000Experiences and Devices69$250$1 to $3,391Microsoft AI15$490$45 to $10,000Microsoft Customer and Partner Solutions25$134$1 to $28,000Security12$526$58 to $10,000Microsoft employees typically share this information voluntarily and anonymously to promote pay transparency, but that means the data isn't official or comprehensive. The company had 223,000 employees on June 30, so a spreadsheet with only around 350 figures on AI usage provides a very small snapshot.

Business Insider found no meaningful correlation in the spreadsheet between reported AI usage and rewards. Higher AI usage did not appear to be associated with higher bonus ratings, merit increases, or a greater likelihood of promotion.

Have a tip? Contact this reporter via email at [email protected] or Signal at +1-425-344-8242. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device; here's our guide to sharing information securely.

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Microsoft Artificial Intelligence Enterprise Software More Cloud Computing Exclusive

These days, I see Microsoft (MSFT +1.02%) less as an old software giant and more as a core AI utility for the global economy, and that shift changes how I think about the stock. With Azure, the company's cloud platform, growing north of 40% and AI revenue already running at a $37 billion annual pace, I believe Microsoft still has what it needs to beat the market into 2027 and beyond.

Image source: Getty Images.

I start with the numbers only to understand the scale. In fiscal 2026 (ending June 30), Microsoft reported $331.8 billion in revenue, up 18%, and operating income of $155.2 billion, up 21%. Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion for the year, and in the most recent quarter, Azure and other cloud services jumped 43%, topping expectations. Those results tell me AI demand is showing up in actual sales and profits.

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Microsoft is now an AI stock The figure that changed how I think about Microsoft is the AI run rate. Management disclosed in its third-quarter call that the AI business has reached a $37 billion annual revenue run rate, up 123% from a year earlier. That includes revenue from Azure AI services, Microsoft 365 Copilot, GitHub Copilot, and other first-party AI tools. A year ago, many investors were asking if AI would ever show up as real money. Now there is a concrete number that sits next to Azure and Office.

I view Copilot as a key piece of the puzzle. Early this year, Microsoft had more than 450 million commercial Microsoft 365 seats. At the start of 2026, only a small slice of those users paid for Copilot. Since then, paid Microsoft 365 Copilot seats have passed 30 million and are rising every quarter, with large enterprises rolling it out to most information workers. Every percentage point of conversion adds billions in high-margin subscription revenue on top of existing licenses. For me, that is what a durable AI business looks like. It sits within tools people use daily and increases average revenue per user, rather than relying on one-off projects.

The company still spends lots of money Of course, none of this comes free. Microsoft is tracking toward roughly $120 billion or more in AI-related capital expenditure in fiscal 2026 and an adjusted calendar 2026 capex plan around $175 billion, with about $25 billion tied to higher component prices for graphics processing units and memory.

That level of spending would scare me if I did not see evidence that the infrastructure is turning into cash. Gross margin dollars and operating income grew faster than revenue, even with heavy AI investment, which suggests Microsoft is finding ways to spread costs across many services and keep margins healthy.

I also pay attention to how experts perceive the stock. Right now, Microsoft carries dozens of "Buy" ratings from analysts who cover the stock and virtually no "Sell" ratings, with the median price target from analysts surveyed by Yahoo! Finance of $569, representing potential upside of 17% from current levels.

That is not a guarantee of future returns, but it reflects a shared view that Microsoft's AI business is becoming a growth engine. In simple terms, this is no longer just a "safe" defensive tech name. It is treated as a leader in the AI infrastructure race alongside Nvidia.

So, is Microsoft a good buy? For me, the answer is yes, with a clear condition. You have to believe the company will stay at the center of enterprise AI, not just chase the trend. When I look at Azure's growth, the Copilot seat counts, the $37 billion AI run rate, and the scale of data center investment, I see a company that has already crossed that line.

The S&P 500 is up by more than 10% this year, and its growth has outpaced Microsoft (MSFT +1.01%), but I don't think that trend will last too much longer. Microsoft's 20% return over the past month shows that more investors are spotting the opportunity.

Its earnings results were the major catalyst behind the surge, and there were a few details in the report that make me think Microsoft is a more promising investment now than the broad-market S&P 500.

Image source: Getty Images.

Cloud computing revenue continues to grow Most of Microsoft's growth is coming from its cloud computing unit. Revenues from that part of the business were up by 27% year over year in Microsoft's fiscal 2026 fourth quarter.

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This segment has maintained high growth rates for many quarters, and I believe that trend will continue. Artificial intelligence (AI) has boosted enterprise demand for cloud platforms. Competitors like Amazon (AMZN +1.24%) and Alphabet (GOOG +1.37%) (GOOGL +1.46%) have reported strong demand for their cloud platforms that continues to accelerate.

Cloud computing operates on a recurring revenue model, and Microsoft's established customers will have to upgrade their plans as their needs evolve. It's extremely cumbersome to switch from one cloud platform to another, and it's not worth the effort if the differences between Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet are marginal.

Microsoft continues to enhance its cloud offering to boost retention and attract new customers. Microsoft Cloud provides a broad model catalog of more than 11,000 models. This selection aids customers that want "the right model for each task, based on quality, latency, cost, and compliance," per the earnings call transcript.

Other business segments are also doing nicely I still view cloud computing as the major story for Microsoft, and continued growth in this segment will help the tech stock outperform the S&P 500 in the future. It accounted for roughly two-thirds of Microsoft's revenue in its fiscal 2026 Q4, but the businesses that generated the remaining third of sales still show some upside potential too.

Artificial intelligence has also translated into higher growth rates for Microsoft's other businesses. LinkedIn and online advertising revenue were up by 12% and 10% year over year, respectively.

Microsoft 365 commercial cloud revenue also rose 16% year over year. The company's "more personal computing" segment, which includes online ads, Xbox, and Windows OEM and devices, was down by 4% year over year. While I would prefer if every segment were delivering revenue growth, this part of Microsoft's business only represented 14.3% of total sales.

Microsoft stock may be suffering from the company's success. While some growth investors are chasing smaller AI stocks in the hopes of more substantial gains, Microsoft steadily delivers better fundamentals each quarter.

Overall revenue and operating income were both up by 18% year over year in the most recent quarter. Those numbers beat most companies in the S&P 500, and to top it off, Microsoft has a lower price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio than the index. These factors explain why I view Microsoft as a better opportunity than the market's most popular benchmark.

The S&P 500 has a lot of dead weight It's not just that Microsoft is a great stock. I also believe investors should look deeper into any index fund or exchange-traded fund they want to buy. For instance, the S&P 500 has recently derived a large portion of its gains from the "Magnificent Seven" stocks, but a closer look reveals many stocks are flat or down this year.

More than 150 S&P 500 holdings are down year to date, while fewer than half of the stocks in this index have a 10% return or higher.

Admittedly, Microsoft is in neither of those categories. It's up year to date, but not by much. However, Microsoft's stock price movements have not kept pace with its improving fundamentals. Meanwhile, some S&P 500 stocks are overextended and more vulnerable to future corrections.

Tech stocks like Microsoft often do the heavy lifting for the S&P 500, and the stock price should eventually catch up with Microsoft's fundamental growth. That's why I like Microsoft better than the S&P 500.

Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.

Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.

It also includes access to the Zacks Style Scores.

What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.

Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.

The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:

Value ScoreFinding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.

Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.

Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.

VGM ScoreIf you like to use all three kinds of investing, then the VGM Score is for you. It's a combination of all Style Scores, and is an important indicator to use with the Zacks Rank. The VGM Score rates each stock on their shared weighted styles, narrowing down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.

How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.

#1 (Strong Buy) stocks have produced an unmatched +23.8% average annual return since 1988, which is more than double the S&P 500's performance over the same time frame. However, the Zacks Rank examines a ton of stocks, and there can be more than 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, and another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.

But it can feel overwhelming to pick the right stocks for you and your investing goals with over 800 top-rated stocks to choose from.

That's where the Style Scores come in.

To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.

Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.

A stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, for instance, even one with Scores of A and B, will still have a declining earnings forecast, and a greater chance its share price will fall too.

Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.

Stock to Watch: Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) Redmond, WA-based Microsoft Corporation is one of the largest broad-based technology providers in the world. The company holds the leading position in the PC software market with its Windows operating system. 

MSFT is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.

Momentum investors should take note of this Computer and Technology stock. MSFT has a Momentum Style Score of B, and shares are up 26.6% over the past four weeks.

For fiscal 2027, 12 analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.29 to $19.59 per share. MSFT boasts an average earnings surprise of +9.3%.

With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, MSFT should be on investors' short list.

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. reduced its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 181,210 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 3,335 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises 2.5% of Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $67,595,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Markel Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% during the first quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 537,630 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $199,014,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Microsoft by 8.4% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,921,677 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,562,197,000 after purchasing an additional 537,634 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Securities Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,616,000. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management raised its position in Microsoft by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 12,492 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,041,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698 shares during the period. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its position in Microsoft by 138.8% in the first quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,356,359 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $502,077,000 after buying an additional 788,297 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of brokerages recently commented on MSFT. HSBC lowered their target price on Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Microsoft from $500.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $586.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a report on Monday, July 27th. Phillip Securities downgraded Microsoft from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $560.27.

Read Our Latest Report on MSFT Insider Activity In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. The trade was a 12.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 37,310 shares of company stock worth $17,256,219 over the last three months. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly preparing to launch its Maia 300 AI accelerator as soon as this fall and is discussing production with TSMC. Developing proprietary chips could reduce long-term reliance on Nvidia, improve supply-chain control, and support Microsoft’s expanding AI infrastructure. Microsoft’s Betting Big on Its Own AI Chips Positive Sentiment: Meta has reportedly become one of Microsoft’s largest Azure AI customers, spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually and consuming substantial computing capacity. The relationship reinforces evidence that enterprise demand is translating into Azure revenue. Meta Emerges as a Major Microsoft Azure AI Client Positive Sentiment: Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.91 per share, while Azure revenue reportedly surpassed $100 billion. Analysts and financial commentators also highlighted a roughly $678 billion backlog and continued strong demand for cloud and AI services. Microsoft Raises Dividend as AI Capital Spending Hits Record Levels Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft approved the Horizon 1 Texas data-center project involving IREN, potentially expanding capacity available for AI workloads. The development is strategically relevant, although the near-term financial benefit to Microsoft remains unclear. Microsoft Accepts Horizon 1 Negative Sentiment: Annual capital spending has climbed nearly 80% to about $115.9 billion, while free cash flow declined. Investors remain focused on whether AI revenue growth will generate adequate returns on this spending. Microsoft Spent $115.9 Billion on AI Negative Sentiment: TCI Management reportedly exited its Microsoft position and increased its Alphabet stake, adding a notable institutional-selling signal. Separately, commentary warned that Microsoft’s valuation depends on optimistic earnings forecasts, while higher bond yields could reduce the present value of future AI profits. TCI Exits Microsoft Microsoft Price Performance Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $483.24 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $419.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $409.20. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22. Microsoft Corporation has a 12-month low of $349.20 and a 12-month high of $553.72.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.

Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

Featured Stories Five stocks we like better than Microsoft VIG, VYM, and VYMI: Which Vanguard Dividend ETF Is Right for You? 3 Closed-End Funds to Maximize Dividend Payments Rocket Lab’s Sell-Off Is Fading—Is It Finally Safe to Buy? $27 Billion in Buybacks: 3 Stocks Betting Their Strong Runs Aren’t Over Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSFT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report).

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Bright Rock Capital Management LLC grew its position in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 15.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 74,000 shares of the software giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Microsoft comprises about 5.5% of Bright Rock Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Bright Rock Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $27,603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 29.7% in the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 21,388 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $7,979,000 after purchasing an additional 4,902 shares during the period. Invariant Investment Management grew its holdings in Microsoft by 11.6% during the second quarter. Invariant Investment Management now owns 979 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. increased its position in Microsoft by 5.3% during the second quarter. Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. now owns 7,233 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $2,698,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP increased its position in Microsoft by 6.0% during the second quarter. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP now owns 972 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantum Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Microsoft by 6.5% in the second quarter. Quantum Financial Advisors LLC now owns 17,205 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $6,418,000 after buying an additional 1,054 shares during the period. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets MSFT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Dbs Bank cut their price objective on Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on Microsoft from $502.00 to $522.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. China Renaissance cut their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 4th. Arete Research raised their price target on Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut shares of Microsoft from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $560.27.

View Our Latest Stock Report on MSFT Microsoft Stock Performance Shares of MSFT stock opened at $483.24 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.10. Microsoft Corporation has a 1 year low of $349.20 and a 1 year high of $553.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $419.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $409.20.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.65 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 20.27%.

Insider Activity In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total transaction of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,007,086.83. This trade represents a 9.05% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Microsoft News Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly preparing to launch its Maia 300 AI accelerator as soon as this fall and is discussing production with TSMC. Developing proprietary chips could reduce long-term reliance on Nvidia, improve supply-chain control, and support Microsoft’s expanding AI infrastructure. Microsoft’s Betting Big on Its Own AI Chips Positive Sentiment: Meta has reportedly become one of Microsoft’s largest Azure AI customers, spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually and consuming substantial computing capacity. The relationship reinforces evidence that enterprise demand is translating into Azure revenue. Meta Emerges as a Major Microsoft Azure AI Client Positive Sentiment: Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.91 per share, while Azure revenue reportedly surpassed $100 billion. Analysts and financial commentators also highlighted a roughly $678 billion backlog and continued strong demand for cloud and AI services. Microsoft Raises Dividend as AI Capital Spending Hits Record Levels Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft approved the Horizon 1 Texas data-center project involving IREN, potentially expanding capacity available for AI workloads. The development is strategically relevant, although the near-term financial benefit to Microsoft remains unclear. Microsoft Accepts Horizon 1 Negative Sentiment: Annual capital spending has climbed nearly 80% to about $115.9 billion, while free cash flow declined. Investors remain focused on whether AI revenue growth will generate adequate returns on this spending. Microsoft Spent $115.9 Billion on AI Negative Sentiment: TCI Management reportedly exited its Microsoft position and increased its Alphabet stake, adding a notable institutional-selling signal. Separately, commentary warned that Microsoft’s valuation depends on optimistic earnings forecasts, while higher bond yields could reduce the present value of future AI profits. TCI Exits Microsoft Microsoft Profile (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

Featured Articles Five stocks we like better than Microsoft VIG, VYM, and VYMI: Which Vanguard Dividend ETF Is Right for You? 3 Closed-End Funds to Maximize Dividend Payments Rocket Lab’s Sell-Off Is Fading—Is It Finally Safe to Buy? $27 Billion in Buybacks: 3 Stocks Betting Their Strong Runs Aren’t Over

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Microsoft (MSFT) is back to being a magnificent Mag 7 stock after earnings. David Wagner is very bullish on the stock's upward momentum due to its diversified business model through Azure cloud and Office suite working in tandem with each other to maximize profits.

Few topics have been as widely discussed in recent years as artificial intelligence (AI). It has taken over the tech world, the business world, and seemingly everything in between. The many companies with their hands in the AI pot all rely on one core thing: data centers.

Data centers are the backbone of AI, but demand for what they can provide is being far outweighed by electricity needs. This isn't the best news for AI hyperscalers (companies that operate large cloud platforms), but it's working in favor of the following two companies.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

1. Constellation Energy Hyperscalers need two things: 24/7 access to massive amounts of power and power that is as green as possible. That's where Constellation Energy (CEG -0.01%) comes into the picture. Constellation is a clean energy company with the largest nuclear power fleet in the U.S.

Nuclear power is a good go-to because energy sources like natural gas emit carbon emissions, and it's not feasible to expect that much 24/7 power from wind or solar. Nuclear power, on the other hand, is carbon-free and can run continuously.

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If you want to see just how much nuclear energy is in demand, look no further than Constellation's 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft (MSFT +0.43%). As part of the deal, Microsoft is restarting the Three Mile Island nuclear facility (now called the Crane Clean Energy Center) in Pennsylvania, with Constellation supplying the plant's energy.

Microsoft's willingness to sign a two-decade agreement underscores the importance of long-term, reliable energy sources for hyperscalers. They're spending hundreds of billions building data centers, but they're only useful if there's enough power to run them. Although the stock is down over 25% year to date through Aug. 20, it presents a better buying opportunity for long-term investors.

2. GE Vernova GE Vernova (GEV -0.95%) doesn't focus on the electricity that data centers need. Instead, it focuses on the hardware required to generate and distribute power.

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Demand for GE Vernova's hardware has surged due to data center build-outs. Through the first half of this year, data center power equipment has generated $5 billion for the company, more than double what it brought in all of last year.

GE Vernova is a good way to get exposure to the infrastructure portion of the AI build-out. It's one of the go-to hardware suppliers, solidifying its place in the power supply chain. And with a backlog of $176 billion, it has guaranteed future revenue that essentially provides a floor for its top line.

Some investors may worry the rally is over, given the stock is up over 42% this year and 194% since the start of 2025. However, it's still in a strong position to produce good long-term results. Expect higher-than-usual volatility, though. That has been a common theme over the past year.

Cohen Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 74,681 shares of the software giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,700 shares during the quarter. Microsoft accounts for approximately 3.8% of Cohen Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Cohen Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $27,858,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MSFT. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Microsoft by 51.3% during the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Microsoft in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Microsoft by 287.0% during the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new stake in Microsoft in the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Microsoft In other news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,928,792.23. This represents a 12.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares in the company, valued at $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 37,310 shares of company stock worth $17,256,219. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $510.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. China Renaissance lowered their price target on shares of Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective (up from $570.00) on shares of Microsoft in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Argus decreased their target price on Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $560.27. Check Out Our Latest Analysis on MSFT

Microsoft Price Performance MSFT stock opened at $483.24 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $419.61 and a 200-day moving average of $409.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Microsoft Corporation has a 12 month low of $349.20 and a 12 month high of $553.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.59 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.11.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The business had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.65 EPS. Microsoft’s revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s payout ratio is 20.27%.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly preparing to launch its Maia 300 AI accelerator as soon as this fall and is discussing production with TSMC. Developing proprietary chips could reduce long-term reliance on Nvidia, improve supply-chain control, and support Microsoft’s expanding AI infrastructure. Microsoft’s Betting Big on Its Own AI Chips Positive Sentiment: Meta has reportedly become one of Microsoft’s largest Azure AI customers, spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually and consuming substantial computing capacity. The relationship reinforces evidence that enterprise demand is translating into Azure revenue. Meta Emerges as a Major Microsoft Azure AI Client Positive Sentiment: Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.91 per share, while Azure revenue reportedly surpassed $100 billion. Analysts and financial commentators also highlighted a roughly $678 billion backlog and continued strong demand for cloud and AI services. Microsoft Raises Dividend as AI Capital Spending Hits Record Levels Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft approved the Horizon 1 Texas data-center project involving IREN, potentially expanding capacity available for AI workloads. The development is strategically relevant, although the near-term financial benefit to Microsoft remains unclear. Microsoft Accepts Horizon 1 Negative Sentiment: Annual capital spending has climbed nearly 80% to about $115.9 billion, while free cash flow declined. Investors remain focused on whether AI revenue growth will generate adequate returns on this spending. Microsoft Spent $115.9 Billion on AI Negative Sentiment: TCI Management reportedly exited its Microsoft position and increased its Alphabet stake, adding a notable institutional-selling signal. Separately, commentary warned that Microsoft’s valuation depends on optimistic earnings forecasts, while higher bond yields could reduce the present value of future AI profits. TCI Exits Microsoft Microsoft Profile (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

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Byrne Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 6.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,971 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 1,216 shares during the quarter. Microsoft comprises approximately 3.8% of Byrne Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Byrne Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $7,077,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MSFT. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its position in Microsoft by 27.0% in the first quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 1,016 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 12,658 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $5,658,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC grew its stake in Microsoft by 410.4% during the 3rd quarter. Discipline Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $1,144,000 after buying an additional 2,138 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 2,374 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Capital Management LLC now owns 23,097 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $9,735,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.13% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Microsoft Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly preparing to launch its Maia 300 AI accelerator as soon as this fall and is discussing production with TSMC. Developing proprietary chips could reduce long-term reliance on Nvidia, improve supply-chain control, and support Microsoft’s expanding AI infrastructure. Microsoft’s Betting Big on Its Own AI Chips Positive Sentiment: Meta has reportedly become one of Microsoft’s largest Azure AI customers, spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually and consuming substantial computing capacity. The relationship reinforces evidence that enterprise demand is translating into Azure revenue. Meta Emerges as a Major Microsoft Azure AI Client Positive Sentiment: Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.91 per share, while Azure revenue reportedly surpassed $100 billion. Analysts and financial commentators also highlighted a roughly $678 billion backlog and continued strong demand for cloud and AI services. Microsoft Raises Dividend as AI Capital Spending Hits Record Levels Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft approved the Horizon 1 Texas data-center project involving IREN, potentially expanding capacity available for AI workloads. The development is strategically relevant, although the near-term financial benefit to Microsoft remains unclear. Microsoft Accepts Horizon 1 Negative Sentiment: Annual capital spending has climbed nearly 80% to about $115.9 billion, while free cash flow declined. Investors remain focused on whether AI revenue growth will generate adequate returns on this spending. Microsoft Spent $115.9 Billion on AI Negative Sentiment: TCI Management reportedly exited its Microsoft position and increased its Alphabet stake, adding a notable institutional-selling signal. Separately, commentary warned that Microsoft’s valuation depends on optimistic earnings forecasts, while higher bond yields could reduce the present value of future AI profits. TCI Exits Microsoft Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of analysts recently weighed in on MSFT shares. Evercore set a $528.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Argus decreased their target price on shares of Microsoft from $620.00 to $510.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 10th. China Renaissance dropped their price target on Microsoft from $630.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, HSBC decreased their price objective on Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Microsoft has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $560.27. Read Our Latest Stock Report on MSFT

Insider Buying and Selling In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,188,276.96. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total value of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,007,086.83. The trade was a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Stock Up 0.4% Microsoft stock opened at $483.24 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $419.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $409.30. Microsoft Corporation has a 1-year low of $349.20 and a 1-year high of $553.72. The company has a market cap of $3.59 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.98% and a net margin of 40.31%.The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.65 earnings per share. Microsoft’s revenue was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.27%.

Microsoft Company Profile (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

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Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT – Free Report) by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,114,417 shares of the software giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 92,079 shares during the period. Microsoft makes up approximately 4.3% of Czech National Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $788,720,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 717,942,580 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $347,211,391,000 after purchasing an additional 15,955,898 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Microsoft by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 306,150,608 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $148,060,557,000 after purchasing an additional 6,388,930 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Microsoft by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 182,618,400 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $88,056,019,000 after purchasing an additional 1,911,142 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Microsoft by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 121,220,561 shares of the software giant’s stock worth $58,624,690,000 after purchasing an additional 980,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Microsoft during the 4th quarter worth about $50,664,631,000. 71.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In A number of research firms have commented on MSFT. Arete Research upped their price objective on shares of Microsoft from $730.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $575.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. President Capital upped their price target on shares of Microsoft from $500.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on shares of Microsoft in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Microsoft from $545.00 to $512.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Forty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $560.27.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on MSFT Microsoft Stock Performance MSFT stock opened at $483.24 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $419.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $409.30. Microsoft Corporation has a 52 week low of $349.20 and a 52 week high of $553.72. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The software giant reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.50. Microsoft had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 31.98%. The firm had revenue of $90.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $87.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.65 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Microsoft Corporation will post 19.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.27%.

Microsoft News Summary Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

Positive Sentiment: Microsoft is reportedly preparing to launch its Maia 300 AI accelerator as soon as this fall and is discussing production with TSMC. Developing proprietary chips could reduce long-term reliance on Nvidia, improve supply-chain control, and support Microsoft’s expanding AI infrastructure. Microsoft’s Betting Big on Its Own AI Chips Positive Sentiment: Meta has reportedly become one of Microsoft’s largest Azure AI customers, spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually and consuming substantial computing capacity. The relationship reinforces evidence that enterprise demand is translating into Azure revenue. Meta Emerges as a Major Microsoft Azure AI Client Positive Sentiment: Microsoft raised its quarterly dividend to $0.91 per share, while Azure revenue reportedly surpassed $100 billion. Analysts and financial commentators also highlighted a roughly $678 billion backlog and continued strong demand for cloud and AI services. Microsoft Raises Dividend as AI Capital Spending Hits Record Levels Neutral Sentiment: Microsoft approved the Horizon 1 Texas data-center project involving IREN, potentially expanding capacity available for AI workloads. The development is strategically relevant, although the near-term financial benefit to Microsoft remains unclear. Microsoft Accepts Horizon 1 Negative Sentiment: Annual capital spending has climbed nearly 80% to about $115.9 billion, while free cash flow declined. Investors remain focused on whether AI revenue growth will generate adequate returns on this spending. Microsoft Spent $115.9 Billion on AI Negative Sentiment: TCI Management reportedly exited its Microsoft position and increased its Alphabet stake, adding a notable institutional-selling signal. Separately, commentary warned that Microsoft’s valuation depends on optimistic earnings forecasts, while higher bond yields could reduce the present value of future AI profits. TCI Exits Microsoft Insiders Place Their Bets In related news, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,810 shares of Microsoft stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.48, for a total value of $2,388,068.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,188,276.96. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Judson Althoff sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.89, for a total transaction of $4,878,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 100,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,007,086.83. This represents a 9.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 37,310 shares of company stock valued at $17,256,219. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Microsoft Profile (Free Report)

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).

Read More Five stocks we like better than Microsoft 2 Biotech Stocks Shaping Up for Major Breakouts 3 Stocks Came Roaring Back—Now They’re Flashing Warning Signs 3 Beaten-Down Stocks That Haven’t Gotten the Message About the S&P 500’s Record Run Darden Restaurants Just Hit a 52-Week High–Is the Olive Garden Comeback Story Legit?

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