Microsoft (MSFT) / Bill Gates

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Microsoft

This top old-school technology stock has posted all-time highs this year and has a massive $138.6 billion sitting on the balance sheet.

Microsoft Inc. (NASDAQ: MSFT) continues to find an increasing amount of support from portfolio managers, who have added the software giant to their holdings at an increasingly faster pace all of this year and last.

Numerous Wall Street analysts feel that Microsoft has become a clear number two in the public or hyper-scale cloud infrastructure market with Azure, which is the company’s cloud computing platform offering. Some have flagged Azure as a solid rival to Amazon’s AWS service.

Analysts also maintain that Microsoft is discounting Azure for large enterprises, such that Azure may be cheaper than AWS for larger users. The cloud was big in the recent earnings report, which was outstanding.

The company has been somewhat quieter on plans for its huge trove of overseas funds, but CEO Satya Nadella surely has big plans for any repatriated money, be it pay off debt, buy back shares, hire employees or spend on research and development.

Shareholders currently receive a 1.85% dividend. The Deutsche Bank price target of $120 compares with a consensus target of $104.55 and the most recent close at $89.71.

Source: DB

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Stocks Hedge Funds Are Buying: Microsoft (MSFT)

The stock is up more than 41% over the past year, which is an exciting growth trajectory for a company of Microsoft’s size and age.

Speaking of growth, Microsoft has become a venerable tech dividend growth name and yields an admirable (compared to the broader tech space) 1.8%.

Microsoft joins Alphabet and Amazon on Morgan Stanley’s list of 15 prime beneficiaries of the big data era.

“We expect the best performing stocks in the technology sector could broaden from consumer- to enterprise-oriented technology providers, challenging the consensus view and positioning that exists in the market today,” according to Morgan Stanley.

Source: Investor Place

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Microsoft Corporation Goes All-In on the Internet of Things

The move should help shore up more growth for Microsoft stock for the long haul

By TOM TAULLI

The valuation on Microsoft stock is not necessarily cheap, with the forward price-to-earnings multiple at 23X. But then again, in light of the company’s financial strength and growth profile, the premium is certainly reasonable.

Source: InvestorPlace

https://investorplace.com/2018/04/micro ... at&cp=pdtk

[winston]

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Strong Buy Stock: Microsoft (MSFT)

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has no shortage of supporters right now.

And two of the most recent bullish blogger pieces highlight a crucial element of the MSFT story for investors — dividends.

Did you know that Microsoft has managed to grow its dividend by 225% in just eight years? Top blogger Valuentum Securities Inc. even wonders if MSFT is setting itself up as a future Dividend Aristocrat. This is the name given to an elite handful of companies that have raised their dividends consecutively for over 25 years.

MSFT’s dividend prowess comes from the fact that this is one of the most cash-rich companies around. Right now the company is sitting on a stupendous cash pile of around $135 billion.

These cash flows are partly generated by the extreme success of MSFT’s Azure cloud platform. Top blogger InvestorPlace’s Aaron Levitt praises Microsoft’s renaissance as a cloud company under the leadership of CEO Satya Nadella. He points out that in the last quarter Azure grew 90% year-over-year.

Five-star KeyBanc analyst Brent Bracelin agrees. He picks MSFT as one of his favorite cloud platforms to own in software as:

“The combination of Office 365, Azure and Dynamics 365 not only makes Microsoft the largest cloud platform in the world, but also ranks it as one of the fastest-growing among its Cloud Titan peers.”

Bracelin — one of the Top 50 analysts on TipRanks — reiterates his Buy rating with a $110 price target.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Strong Buy Stock: Microsoft (MSFT)

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has no shortage of supporters right now.

And two of the most recent bullish blogger pieces highlight a crucial element of the MSFT story for investors — dividends.

Did you know that Microsoft has managed to grow its dividend by 225% in just eight years? Top blogger Valuentum Securities Inc. even wonders if MSFT is setting itself up as a future Dividend Aristocrat. This is the name given to an elite handful of companies that have raised their dividends consecutively for over 25 years.

MSFT’s dividend prowess comes from the fact that this is one of the most cash-rich companies around. Right now the company is sitting on a stupendous cash pile of around $135 billion.

These cash flows are partly generated by the extreme success of MSFT’s Azure cloud platform. Top blogger InvestorPlace’s Aaron Levitt praises Microsoft’s renaissance as a cloud company under the leadership of CEO Satya Nadella. He points out that in the last quarter Azure grew 90% year-over-year.

Five-star KeyBanc analyst Brent Bracelin agrees. He picks MSFT as one of his favorite cloud platforms to own in software as:

“The combination of Office 365, Azure and Dynamics 365 not only makes Microsoft the largest cloud platform in the world, but also ranks it as one of the fastest-growing among its Cloud Titan peers.”

Bracelin — one of the Top 50 analysts on TipRanks — reiterates his Buy rating with a $110 price target.

Source: Investor Place

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Could Microsoft Earnings Have Been Better?

By Paul Ausick

Source: 24/7 Wall Street

https://247wallst.com/technology-3/2018 ... Newsletter

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It’s Still a Great Time to Buy This Stock

Microsoft’s involvement in cloud computing, legal cannabis, and cryptocurrencies will generate a lot of revenue, and more money can lead to a higher share price.

Source: Money Morning

http://dailytradealert.com/2018/05/16/i ... his-stock/

[winston]

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Best Tech Stock: Microsoft (MSFT)

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has a powerful weapon up its sleeve. Gaming.

The company’s gaming unit is “moving from Gillette to Netflix” according to top-rated Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss. He has just reiterated his MSFT Buy rating with a bullish $130 price target (30% upside potential).

“We think that gaming has historically been largely ignored, misunderstood, and undervalued by analysts and investors” says Weiss. Luckily, he is now here to set the record straight.

Kiss goodbye to the former “razor/razor blade model” centered on the $400 Xbox console. Instead MSFT wants to move towards a much broader subscription gaming service. It will stream games from its Azure cloud platform to all types of devices.

“Azure is a key differentiator for Microsoft in the technology required to achieve streaming,” explains Weiss because it “allows for developers to scale and customize gaming infrastructure on a reliable cloud.”

This view was confirmed by the analyst’s recent meeting with Microsoft’s Executive VP of Gaming, Phil Spencer. Weiss notes that MSFT now wants to add five new development studios to substantially boost its first-party gaming content. And ultimately, gaming could “support a path to $50 billion in earnings-before-interest-and-tax and a $1 trillion market cap for Microsoft.”

In total, MSFT — a “Strong Buy” stock — has scored 16 recent buy ratings, with just 1 hold rating and 1 sell rating. Meanwhile, the average analyst price target of $114 indicates 14% upside from the current share price.

Source: Investor Place

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'DIGITAL UTILITIES' FUEL MODERN WORK AND PLAY

Today, we're highlighting a dominant software company...

Regular readers know we love utility companies – but some technology companies play a similar role. Doc Eifrig calls them "digital utilities."

Just as we use water and electricity every day, these tech titans have become crucial to how we live and work in a digital age. Today, we look one of the biggest tech companies in the world...

We're talking about software giant Microsoft (MSFT). Microsoft's products dominate our tech-heavy work and leisure activities... If you use a computer, you're probably familiar with the Windows operating system or Microsoft Office productivity tools.

Right now, more than 135 million people use its subscription-based Office 365 every month. Having a large, dedicated user base is great for profits... In 2017, Microsoft reported net income of $21.2 billion – almost double its 2015 results.

As you can see in the chart below, shares are in a major, long-term uptrend. Doc recommended the stock to his Income Intelligence readers in February 2011, and the position has soared 316% since then.

Source: Daily Wealth

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4 Reasons You Should Sell Microsoft Stock Despite Its Comeback

Microsoft's past growth has become both a blessing and a curse

By WILL HEALY

1. Forward PE 25; EPS 15%;
2. The Influence of Windows and Office Lingers - Mobile Phones
3. Azure Affirms Its Status as Old Tech
4. Large Market Cap

Source: Investor Place

https://investorplace.com/2018/08/4-rea ... h=nonbuyer