At the end of April, Microsoft announced third quarter earnings for the fiscal year 2024, with the tech giant beating expectations on the top and bottom line. Keep reading to learn more about Microsoft’s Q3 performance and what analysts are forecasting for its share price.

• The Invest.MT5 account allows you to buy real stocks and shares from 15 of the largest stock exchanges in the world.

All trading is high risk and you can lose more than you risk on a trade. Never invest more than you can afford to lose, as some trades will lose and some trades will win. Start small to understand your own risk tolerance levels or practice on a demo account first to build your knowledge before investing.

Microsoft Fiscal Q3 2024 Performance

Here are some of the key highlights from Microsoft’s fiscal third quarter earnings report:

• Revenue of $61.86 billion vs an expected $60.86 billion.
• Earnings per Share (EPS) of $2.94 vs an expected $2.82.
• Operating income of $27.6 billion, an increase of 23% year on year.

Microsoft was quick to embrace the latest developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI), investing more than $10 billion in ChatGPT’s creator OpenAI at the beginning of 2023. It was just as quick to integrate this technology into its own product offerings, which appears to already be bearing fruit for the company.

Although Amazon’s AWS remains the largest player in the cloud infrastructure market, Microsoft’s Azure, which long ago cemented second place, is edging ever closer to the top spot. Revenue from Azure and other cloud services jumped an impressive 31% in the third quarter, with AI apparently contributing 7% to this growth.

Microsoft has also rolled out Copilot, an AI powered tool which, for an additional subscription fee, can be integrated with Microsoft 365 products to help boost productivity. It also works with Bing search engine and the Edge internet browser, both of which gained market share in the latest quarter.

Its first mover advantage in AI seems to have also benefitted Microsoft in the stock market. In the last year, share price has jumped 33%, outpacing the wider S&P 500’s gain of 25% over the same time and making Microsoft the most valuable public company in the world in the process.

But where to next for the Microsoft share price? After the recent share price growth, have the future benefits of AI already been factored into the Microsoft stock price? Let’s see what the analysts have to say.

Microsoft Stock Forecast - What do the Analysts Say?

According to analysts polled by TipRanks for a Microsoft stock forecast in the past 3 months, there are currently 31 buy, 1 hold and 1 sell ratings on the stock. The highest price level for a Microsoft stock forecast is $600.00 with the lowest price target at $450.00.

The average price target for a Microsoft stock forecast is $489.56.

An Example Trading Idea for the Microsoft Stock Price

An example trading idea for the Microsoft share price could be as follows:  

• Buy the stock on a break above $435.00 to allow for volatility. 
• Target just below the highest analyst price target of $489.00. 
• Keep your risk small at a maximum of 5% of your total account.   
• Time Line = 6 - 12 months  
• If you buy 10 Microsoft shares:  
  • If target is reached = $540.00 potential profit [($489.00 - $435.00) * 10 shares].

Remember that markets go up and down and it is unlikely the share price will move up in a straight line. In fact, it may even go much further down before it rises.

Be sure to exercise good risk management and always know how much you could potentially lose on a trade and the risks involved, as well as the costs.

With the Admiral Markets Invest.MT5 account you can buy and sell US stocks with a commission from $0.02 per share. This means buying 10 shares in Microsoft stock would result in a commission of $0.20 ($0.02 * 10 shares) for executing a per-side transaction.

However, there is a low minimum transaction fee of $1. So, the example trading idea above would result in a commission of just $1 overall! 

How to Buy Microsoft Stock in 4 Steps  

With Admiral Markets, you can buy shares with a low commission of just $0.02 per share and a low minimum commission of just $1 on US stocks. 

1. Open an account with Admiral Markets to access the dashboard.   
2. Open the web trading platform.   
3. Search for Microsoft and click the symbol to open a price chart. 
4. Click Create New Order from the bottom of the screen to open the trading ticket. 

Click on the banner below to trade Microsoft stock today ▼▼▼ 

Do You See the Microsoft Stock Price Moving Differently?   

Remember that all analytics and trading ideas are based on the personal view and experience of the author.

If you believe there is a higher chance Microsoft share price will move lower, then you can also trade short from a CFD (Contracts for Difference) trading account which Admiral Markets also provide.

The Trade.MT5 and Trade.MT4 account allows you to speculate on the price direction of stocks and shares using CFDs.

This means you can trade long and short to potentially profit from rising and falling stock prices.

INFORMATION ABOUT ANALYTICAL MATERIALS: 

The given data provides additional information regarding all analysis, estimates, prognosis, forecasts, market reviews, weekly outlooks or other similar assessments or information (hereinafter “Analysis”) published on the websites of Admiral Markets investment firms operating under the Admiral Markets trademark (hereinafter “Admiral Markets”) Before making any investment decisions please pay close attention to the following: 

• This is a marketing communication. The content is published for informative purposes only and is in no way to be construed as investment advice or recommendation. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research, and that it is not subject to any prohibition on dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research.
• Any investment decision is made by each client alone whereas Admiral Markets shall not be responsible for any loss or damage arising from any such decision, whether or not based on the content.
• With view to protecting the interests of our clients and the objectivity of the Analysis, Admiral Markets has established relevant internal procedures for prevention and management of conflicts of interest.
• The Analysis is prepared by an independent analyst Roberto Rivero, Freelance Contributor (hereinafter "Author") based on personal estimations.
• Whilst every reasonable effort is taken to ensure that all sources of the content are reliable and that all information is presented, as much as possible, in an understandable, timely, precise and complete manner, Admiral Markets does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information contained within the Analysis.
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• Leveraged products (including contracts for difference) are speculative in nature and may result in losses or profit. Before you start trading, please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved.