Citi analyst Tyler Radke reiterated a Buy rating on Microsoft Corp
His latest round of fieldwork (reseller survey, channel checks, and CIO survey) gave him incremental confidence heading into the fiscal second quarter, with resellers indicating high quota achievement levels on a broad-based strength (Azure commitments + Dynamics).
Radke expects a solid beat and raise and notes improving IT budgets, partially driven by generative AI where Microsoft is in a leadership position with multiple monetization vectors which can drive a durable multi-year reacceleration in top/bottom line growth.
As such, Microsoft remains the analyst's preferred mega-cap name in software.
Radke increased his projections, citing improved Azure growth, contributions from Copilot, favorable foreign exchange impacts, and a stronger PC market.
The analyst projected second-quarter revenue and EPS of $61.597 billion (versus consensus of $61.04 billion) and $2.80 (versus consensus of $2.75).
An investor can make a few decisions when deciding whether a stock is a good buy. In addition to valuation metrics and price action which you can find on Benzinga's quote pages - like Microsoft's page for example - there are factors like whether or not a company pays a dividend or buys a large portion of its stock each quarter.
These are known as capital allocation programs. Microsoft does pay a dividend, which yields 0.9% per year as of the closing price on Jan. 24, 2024. Feel free to search Benzinga's dividend calendar for the next company that is due to pay a dividend and determine what kind of yield you can earn for holding a share of the company.
Price Action: MSFT shares traded higher by 1.07% at $403.16 on the last check Wednesday.
