Microsoft stock hits record high after better-than-expected results.
Of the 35 analysts who follow Microsoft, 31 recommend buying the company's stock, three recommend "holding" the stock, and only one recommends selling.
(Reuters)- Microsoft shares hit a record high on Friday, with investors celebrating another better-than-expected quarterly result for the company, supported by growth in cloud computing services and software sales.
Shares of one of the world's oldest and best-known technology companies rose about 5 percent to $108,20, adding more than $30 billion to the company's market value, which already stood at $802 billion.
At least six brokerage firms have raised their price expectations for stocks in the coming months, following the results released the previous evening.
Supported by a surge in demand for cloud computing, Microsoft has more than doubled in value since Satya Nadella took over as CEO in 2014 and shifted the company's focus to new businesses.
While the productivity and business processes unit, which includes the Office 365 suite of software, saw revenue growth of 13,1 percent to $9,67 billion, revenue from the Azure cloud computing area soared 89 percent.
“Based on the results, they managed to outperform all the key metrics that people pay attention to. I don’t see anything that should raise any concern,” said Daniel Morgan, portfolio manager at Synovus Trust, a Microsoft shareholder.
Of the 35 analysts who follow Microsoft, 31 recommend buying the company's stock, three recommend "holding" the stock, and only one recommends selling.
By Vibhuti Sharma