
NASDAQ:MSFT
He has owned this for a long time. The issue is partly AI and worries about how it can use AI effectively. Also its $80 billion in capital expenditures. This can hurt margins and free cash flow but Capex is coming down. It is big on the institutional side and we should see the value of that next year.
One, a monster quarter, which he expects including a little lift in their Azure cloud business. MSFT is talking a lot about quantum computing, and a lot of people see them as the reserve for quantum (and be the Defense Dept.'s go-to for quantum, which he doesnt buy), but estimates in this area are low, which could be another catalyst.
Stock pulled back 6% on the January reporting, attractive entry point. Cloud computing grew 31% instead of the 32+% expected. She thinks 31% is still pretty decent. Spending on data centres increased quite a bit. Management believes growth will pick up in latter part of this year.
Tends to invest in a company, such as LinkedIn, before it becomes mainstream. Early investment in AI as well, and well positioned to ride that wave. Strong balance sheet, recurring revenue stream. Yield is 0.8%.
He trimmed shares late last year and placed hedges in effect through March. The company got ahead of itself. The CEO in the last 2 conference calls pushed too hard AI, though they are a company can roll out AI enhancements to their Office 365 an cloud products. Also, they are vulnerable to European anti-trust moves. He himself won't buy it now, but you can buy it for the long term. He's up 60% on it over the last 2 years, so he's being prudent. It has burned off a lot of excess and sees it falling below $400 in a sloppy market. It will be capped at $450.
Misunderstood company - best source of value is distribution (not new tech). Ability to scale new technologies unprecedented. Ability to manage capital and manage business very strong. Excellent margins and strong cash flows. CEO is essential to company success, but company has reached "escape velocity", so not concerned about management ability (can be replaced).
They're spending at least $80 billion of capex in AI to keep up with peers, but this has been overhang on the stock. Shares are up only 13% this year, lagging Mag 7 peers. It's early--we don't know what's going on with their AI, but MSFT's suite of services have always been aimed at operational efficiency. We'll see how their AI plays out in coming quarters.
You're buying this at a lower multiple as recently as January. If you think earnings will hold up as well as AI and data centre spending, this makes sense.