Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares may be 35% higher year on year, but Wedbush analysts reckon there is plenty more upside to come for the world’s most valuable company after its latest profit beat.
Azure, with its rapidly accelerating artificial intelligence integrations, was the “star of the show”, said Wedbush, noting the 7% positive impact the cloud-computing platform had on profit growth.
Azure saw revenue growth 31% above the Street’s 29% estimate as more enterprises signed up for the AI functionality, which increased deal flow while further expanding market share.
Wedbush stated: “We continue to believe MSFT is well positioned to continue generating profitable growth with Copilot further accelerating the growth story.”
Microsoft’s ChatGPT-powered Copilot AI companion, meanwhile, is showing no signs of slowing down, with analysts staging: “As Microsoft looks to unlock more use cases with foundational cloud AI, this quarter proved that the right moves are being made to further expand Copilot conversions for the rest of this year.”
It was “another get out the popcorn moment” for chief executive Satya Nadella and Co, said Wedbush, giving the stock a $500 12-month price target.
Shares were swapping for $412 in early Friday trades.