Microsoft’s shares dropped on Thursday after the company reported weaker-than-expected growth from its Azure cloud computing platform in the fiscal second quarter. The news led some analysts to lower their price targets for the stock, with UBS lowering its target to $510 due to disappointing Azure growth.
Despite the drop, the majority of analysts maintain a “buy” rating on Microsoft’s shares, with a consensus price target of around $516, representing a 24% premium to Thursday’s close. However, some analysts, including Bank of America and Morgan Stanley, remain optimistic about Microsoft’s potential in artificial intelligence (AI), citing its Azure AI Foundry2 platform as a sign of growth.
Microsoft attributed the disappointing Azure results to “execution issues” in non-artificial intelligence segments. The company still projects strong current-quarter growth for Azure, but the news raised concerns among investors and led to a 6% daily drop in shares on Wednesday.
Source: https://www.investopedia.com/microsoft-stock-slumps-as-azure-execution-issues-make-analysts-wary-8783297