Overview
- Investors revived the bull case after Bill Ackman disclosed a new Pershing Square stake, with shares near $421 and the average Wall Street target about $561.
- A Trefis model points to roughly $600 over time using 15% yearly revenue growth and a steady price-to-earnings ratio.
- In Q3 reported April 29, Microsoft beat estimates with $82.89 billion in revenue and $4.27 in EPS as Azure grew about 40% and the AI business reached a $37 billion annual run rate.
- Heavy AI spending is the main risk, with quarterly capital outlays at $30.88 billion, up 84% from a year earlier, and larger losses tied to OpenAI.
- Other overhangs include a UK antitrust probe into cloud and business software, a 5% headcount cut at LinkedIn, and a June 1 shift to usage-based billing for GitHub Copilot that could help margins.