Microsoft Corp. just crashed the $4 trillion party, becoming the second company to strut into this exclusive club after Nvidia Corp. Its stock soared 8.2% in early New York trading, pushing its market value to a whopping $4.1 trillion. The tech giant’s quarterly earnings report left Wall Street giggling with delight, beating expectations and sparking a premarket frenzy on Thursday.
The secret sauce? Microsoft’s Azure cloud-computing unit, which skyrocketed with a 39% sales jump, leaving analysts’ measly 34% predictions in the dust.
Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood dropped the mic on a call, forecasting over $30 billion in capital spending for the fiscal first quarter and double-digit revenue growth for the year. Azure’s expected to keep the party going with a 37% growth rate, making analysts’ jaws drop faster than a bad internet connection.
Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners LLC, couldn’t stop raving. “Microsoft’s the backbone of every office—Word, Outlook, Excel, you name it,” she said. “This quarter’s results scream ‘no competition’ louder than a malfunctioning printer.”
The artificial intelligence boom has Microsoft riding high, hoisting megacap tech stocks to dizzying heights. The company’s cloud business didn’t just grow—it sprinted past forecasts, cementing Microsoft’s spot as the cool kid in the AI playground. Wall Street’s 68 out of 72 analysts are chanting “buy” with the enthusiasm of caffeinated coders at a hackathon, while only one dared to whisper “sell,” according to Bloomberg data.
Microsoft’s not just throwing cash at servers and calling it a day. Its $30 billion spending plan is a bold flex, aimed at keeping Azure’s engines roaring. Hood’s promise of slower but steady spending growth in 2026 has investors nodding approvingly, like IT folks finally fixing a crashed system.
Azure’s $75 billion annual revenue reveal was the cherry on top, a first-time disclosure that had analysts scrambling for their calculators. The 34% year-over-year leap had Wall Street buzzing louder than a data center’s cooling fans. Microsoft’s not playing catch-up—it’s lapping the competition, with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud eating its digital dust.
The company’s fiscal fourth-quarter revenue hit $76.4 billion, an 18% jump that’s the fastest in over three years. Net income climbed 24% to $27.2 billion, leaving earnings per share at $3.65, well above the $3.37 Wall Street expected. It’s the kind of performance that makes shareholders high-five their screens.
Microsoft’s Productivity and Business Processes segment, home to Office 365 and LinkedIn, raked in $33.1 billion, up 16%. The More Personal Computing unit, with Windows and Xbox, chipped in $13.5 billion, up 9% thanks to a device demand rebound. The company’s 2025 fiscal year closed with $281.7 billion in revenue and $101.8 billion in net income, proving it’s not just a one-hit wonder.
Investors are eating it up, with Microsoft’s stock up 22% this year, outpacing the S&P 500’s 8.32% yawn. Since its April 8 dip, when tariff threats spooked markets, the stock’s surged nearly 45%. It’s a comeback story juicier than a rebooted Windows update.
But it’s not all smooth sailing. Microsoft’s cozy OpenAI partnership is getting a bit rocky, with talks of renegotiating access and stakes as OpenAI flirts with Google and Oracle. Microsoft’s hedging its bets, cozying up to xAI and Meta to keep Azure’s AI game strong, according to Reuters.
The tech giant’s also wrestling with data center shortages, as AI demand outpaces supply faster than a viral meme. Hood admitted on the earnings call that capacity issues persist, with hopes pinned on December for relief. It’s a hiccup, but Microsoft’s $368 billion contracted backlog suggests it’s got enough business to keep the lights on.
Wall Street’s still smitten, with price targets averaging $542.66, hinting at more upside. UBS and Citigroup are throwing confetti, raising targets to $600 and $613, respectively, citing Azure’s dominance and cost discipline. After shedding 9,000 jobs in 2025, Microsoft’s margins are looking as trim as a freshly defragged hard drive.
While Apple’s stock sulks at $3.2 trillion, down 17% amid AI strategy woes, Microsoft and Nvidia are the belle of the ball. X posts from financial folks are already dreaming of a $5 trillion valuation by 2027 if AI keeps humming. For now, Microsoft’s $4.1 trillion crown is shining bright, and Wall Street’s ready to keep the party going.
Leave a Reply