436 stories mentioning MicrosoftUpdated 2d ago
Rose with tech stocks in a broad rally; its Xbox studio Compulsion Games is reportedly planning to shut down.
Nvidia (NVDA), Microsoft (MSFT), Meta Platforms (META), Palantir (PLTR) and over 20 other tech companies penned a letter Friday urging policymakers to avoid "premature restrictions" on open-weight artificial intelligence models.The companies didn't immediately reply to requests for comment from.Price: $209.25, Change: $+0.49, Percent Change: +0.23%
Nvidia, Microsoft, Other Tech Firms Urge Policymakers Against 'Premature' Open-Weight AI Restrictions
Microsoft (MSFT) and Databricks are extending their decade-long partnership through the 2030s, deepening their work together on enterprise AI as Databricks shifts more of its core business operations to Microsoft's Azure cloud.Databricks will also expand its use of Microsoft's Cobalt infrastructure, including plans to adopt the newer Cobalt 200 chips, which offer improved performance and built-in memory protection for AI workloads, the companies said Thursday in a statement.Microsoft said it will continue adding Databricks' AI tools, including Genie and Unity AI Gateway, into products such as Microsoft 365, Teams, Copilot and Power BI.Price: $380.46, Change: $-9.88, Percent Change: -2.53%
Microsoft's (MSFT) Azure and Copilot are key fiscal Q4 drivers, supporting the company's high-teens total return profile, Morgan Stanley said in a Thursday note.Talks with channel partners indicated a "constructive" quarter for Microsoft, driven by durable demand across its commercial portfolio as evidenced by ongoing cloud migrations and expanding Azure AI deployments, among others, the investment firm said.Azure is estimated to grow around 41% in Q4, while checks back strong Microsoft 365 Copilot momentum, Morgan Stanley said, noting that both Azure and Copilot are set for inflection. Azure's outperformance should be sustained by incremental supply over the near to medium term as demand remains robust, the investment firm added.Microsoft is set to release its fiscal Q4 results on July 29.Morgan Stanley has an overweight rating and $600 price target on Microsoft.Price: $379.40, Change: $-10.94, Percent Change: -2.80%
A majority of US residents object to artificial intelligence data centers being built near their homes despite the economic benefits of such projects, a Redfin.com survey showed Wednesday.Some 53% of Americans opposed construction of those data storage and processing facilities in their neighborhoods, while 34% expressed support, according to the online real estate brokerage. The survey covered 4,000 respondents, who were asked about how they feel about certain types of properties being built in their areas."People are concerned about noise, increased traffic, heavy water and electricity use, and how a large industrial building might change the feel of their neighborhood," Redfin Premier agent Matt Ferris said. "Right or wrong, the perception is that data centers will change neighborhoods in a negative way."AI data centers can provide educational and other benefits to local communities, according to the report.US technology giants Amazon.com (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft (MSFT), and Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) are expanding their data center footprints in the US and globally amid robust demand for AI and cloud services.New York imposed a ban on the construction of new large-scale data centers using at least 50 megawatts of power for up to one year, the first US state to do so, according to a CNBC report last week.Roughly 39% of respondents opposed construction of a new apartment complex in their neighborhood, while 32% were against a mixed-use development, the Redfin survey showed Wednesday. Some 48% opposed converting single-family homes into smaller dwellings to increase supply in their area.In terms of age group, older generations are more likely than the younger ones to oppose data centers in their area, according to the report.Price: $244.09, Change: $-3.46, Percent Change: -1.40%
Microsoft's (MSFT) Azure is likely to sustain strong long-term growth, while artificial intelligence revenue gradually rises with the increasing adoption of Copilot, Truist Securities said in a note Wednesday.The brokerage said it expects a solid Q4 and accompanying outlook and added that broader industry dynamics will continue to result in a sustained supply-demand imbalance, and thus, it expects "Azure growth remaining at a consistently strong level for the foreseeable future.""A variety of factors could turn the tide on negative investor sentiment on high capex dynamics at least in the case of Microsoft," Truist said.Truist maintained a buy rating with a $575 price target.Price: $388.65, Change: $-9.10, Percent Change: -2.29%
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) committed to invest up to $5 billion in Anthropic, while the companies entered into a strategic partnership covering AMD chips.AMD will make the investment in the Amazon.com-backed (AMZN) artificial intelligence firm "in the future," the companies said Wednesday.The strategic partnership covers the deployment of up to 2 gigawatts of AMD Instinct MI450 series graphics processor units in AMD Helios rack-scale solutions, with initial deployment starting in the first half of next year. Anthropic is already using AMD Instinct MI355X GPUs, according to a joint statement."We are thrilled to deepen our partnership with Anthropic and deploy AMD Helios at gigawatt scale," AMD Chief Executive Lisa Su said. "This collaboration brings together Anthropic's leadership in frontier AI with the full strength of AMD high-performance computing."AMD shares were up 1.8% in Wednesday late-afternoon trade, bringing its year-to-date gains to about 159%."By partnering with AMD across the stack, we are securing the capacity we need and optimizing it for training and serving Claude," Anthropic Chief Compute Officer Tom Brown said.The companies are also launching a multiyear engineering collaboration under which teams will use Claude to optimize workloads for AMD Instinct GPUs and accelerate ROCm software development. ROCm is an open-source software stack designed for GPU computation.AMD will "broadly adopt" Claude across its engineering and product development teams, the companies said.Earlier this year, Anthropic expanded its partnership with existing backer Amazon, which said at the time it was investing another $5 billion in the Claude maker, with up to an additional $20 billion in the future. The AI company confidentially filed for an initial public offering in the US earlier in 2026.The Anthropic collaboration marks the latest deal for AMD, which earlier this week announced an expanded strategic partnership spanning its GPUs, central processing units, networking and software on Microsoft's (MSFT) Azure cloud-computing platform.AMD is scheduled to report its fiscal second-quarter results Aug. 4.Price: $554.43, Change: $+10.00, Percent Change: +1.84%
Microsoft's (MSFT) Xbox unit said Wednesday it is rolling out a new feature that lets players access classic original Xbox games on PCs and supported handheldsThe early release on Wednesday of Xbox Backward Compatibility on PC enables four classic Xbox titles to run on PCs and handheld devices such as the ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, in supported regions, the company said.Price: $389.00, Change: $-8.76, Percent Change: -2.20%
Microsoft's (MSFT) Q4 results are likely to demonstrate robust AI business and steady M365 revenue growth, but higher capex, stiff competition and risks of AI disruption will continue to weigh on investor sentiment, Oppenheimer said in a Wednesday note.Oppenheimer said it expects Q4 EPS of $4.16 on revenue of $87 billion, arguing that channel checks around enterprise IT demand, pipeline and June quarter performance are positive for the company.Microsoft is set to report its Q4 results on July 29.Analysts noted that they expect Q4 Azure constant-currency revenue growth of 41%, which could support the company's multiples since its reiterated robust usage for its AI division.Oppenheimer said it reiterated its outperform rating on the stock and price target of $515.Price: $389.16, Change: $-8.59, Percent Change: -2.16%
Tech stocks rose late Monday afternoon with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) each adding 0.2%.The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index gained 0.6%.In corporate news, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares climbed 2.3% after the company expanded its partnership with Microsoft (MSFT) spanning AMD GPUs, CPUs, networking, and software on Microsoft Azure. Microsoft shares added 1.8%.Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google is working on a new server chip that will allow it to serve AI models to users more efficiently, The Information reported. The stock rose 1.6%.Meta Platforms' (META) Q2 results are expected to top Wall Street's estimates amid solid advertising trends, while higher memory costs may prompt the company to increase its full-year capital expenditures outlook, BofA Securities said. Meta shares added 0.4%.Nvidia (NVDA) expanded its Nvidia Agent Toolkit to include new Omniverse libraries, enabling AI agents to add physical-world AI capabilities to applications, as well as prepare 3D content for simulation. The stock eased 0.1%.
Tech stocks were higher late Monday afternoon, with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) rising 0.6% and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) adding 0.8%.The Philadelphia Semiconductor index rose 1.3%.In corporate news, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares gained 3.7% after the company said it expanded its partnership with Microsoft (MSFT) spanning AMD GPUs, CPUs, networking and software on Microsoft Azure. Microsoft shares added 1.7%.
(Updates with recent stock movement in headline and first paragraph.)Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) shares were up 3.9% in afternoon trading on Monday after the company said it expanded its partnership with Microsoft spanning AMD GPUs, CPUs, networking and software on Microsoft Azure.Microsoft will power frontier model AI inference through the deployment of the AMD Helios Rackscale Solution, and Azure will also add two new AMD EPYC CPU-powered VM series and broaden its use of Pensando DPUs to support its networking services."Through our collaboration with AMD, we are expanding the Azure infrastructure portfolio with AMD Helios to give customers the performance, scale and choice they need to build and run the next generation of AI applications," Microsoft Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella said.AMD will begin shipping Helios to Microsoft and other customers in the second half of 2026, it said.Price: $515.69, Change: $+19.93, Percent Change: +4.02%
Microsoft (MSFT) investors will be watching capital expenditure levels, growth of the Azure business, and broader AI monetization in the company's fiscal Q4 financial results on July 29, BofA Securities said in a note emailed Monday.The investment firm said Azure growth will be the key metric to watch, adding that a year-on-year growth of or above 39% to 40% as guided by the company is "needed for the stock to work, while a miss could intensify concerns around AI return on investment."Demand is still exceeding capacity, supporting the conversion of remaining performance obligations, or RPO, to revenue. "RPO conversion could be a major growth driver given last quarter's $627 billion commercial RPO level," the firm said.BofA said it expects Q4 capital expenditure of $42 billion, up 32% quarter on quarter and 74% year on year, due to AI capacity expansion, which will compress free cash flow to $14.4 billion from $25.5 billion a year ago."We expect continued seat and AI [annual recurring revenue] growth as Azure AI consumption and capacity scale and view these metrics as proof points that AI adoption is translating into incremental revenue," the firm said.BofA reiterated its buy rating and $500 price target on Microsoft.Price: $397.12, Change: $+3.30, Percent Change: +0.84%
The most-talked-about stocks in the Reddit subforum Wallstreetbets were mostly higher hours before Monday's opening bell.Sandisk (SNDK) was up 4.1% in pre-bell activity, after closing Friday with a 4% decline.Micron Technology (MU) advanced by 4.1% premarket, reversing a 0.5% decline from the previous session.AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) was 2.6% higher pre-bell, after a 5.1% increase from Friday's session.SpaceX (SPCX) rose by 1.9% hours before market open, swinging from a 5.4% decline at Friday's close.DTE Energy (DTE) was up 1.1% in premarket activity, following a 0.5% decline from the previous session.Nvidia (NVDA) advanced by 0.7% pre-bell, after a 2.2% decline from Friday's session.Alphabet (GOOG) was 0.5% higher in premarket hours, swinging from a 2.2% fall at Friday's close.Microsoft (MSFT) declined by 0.4% pre-bell, after a 1.8% fall at Friday's close.
(Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)US equity indexes slumped as growth sectors sold off while crude oil jumped after Iran widened its attack on Washington assets in the Middle East.The Nasdaq retreated 0.9% to 25,657.2, with the S&P 500 down 0.5% to 7,493.6 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lower by 0.4% to 52,362.8 after midday Friday. Communication services, consumer discretionary, and technology led decliners, while energy was the sole gainer."A Chinese startup called Moonshot announced it had a new Kimi K3 model that it claims is on par with American AI offerings from OpenAI and Anthropic," Derek Holt, head of capital market economics at Scotiabank, said in a note. "It's a replay of the prior market scare around China's DeepSeek which markets ultimately shook off and which itself may be important guidance for today. Still, AI and AI-related stocks across the tech world are under negative pressure."Netflix (NFLX), part of the communication services sector, reported mixed fiscal Q2 results overnight, with earnings above consensus while sales missed, and Q3 guidance lagging market expectations. Shares sank 6.8%, helping lead the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq lower.Shares of Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) slumped nearly 13%, the worst performer on the Nasdaq, as growth in the company's da Vinci robotic surgery system in the US moderated amid changes in Affordable Care Act subsidies.Meta Platforms (META) is in talks to rent out computing power from its data centers to Anthropic in a deal that could be worth up to $10 billion over two years, The New York Times reported Friday, citing people with knowledge of the discussions.Apple (AAPL) has sent personal legal warnings to dozens of former employees now working at Microsoft-backed (MSFT) OpenAI to find proof that the artificial intelligence company stole its trade secrets, the Financial Times reported Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. Shares of Microsoft dropped 1.7%, one of the biggest laggards on the Dow.In geopolitical news, US Central Command said in a post on X that it completed the sixth consecutive wave of attacks against Iran, degrading the nation's military capabilities and holding it "accountable" for recent attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump has threatened to launch broad-based air strikes on Iranian infrastructure and has also declined to rule out a ground assault on Iran's coast or islands, Reuters reported.In response, Iran announced attacks on Gulf countries that host US airbases, including Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait, the Reuters news report said. Authorities in Kuwait said one of the country's power generation and water desalination stations had been hit in an Iranian attack, it added. Iran recently warned the US that it has asked its allies, Yemen's Houthis, to stand ready to close the Red Sea chokepoint.The front-month US West Texas Intermediate jumped 4% to $82.10 a barrel, and global benchmark North Sea Brent advanced 3.9% to $87.50 a barrel.US Treasury yields traded mixed, with the 10-year down 2.4 basis points to 4.55%. The two-year rose 1.6 basis points to 4.17%.In precious metal markets, gold futures edged up 0.8% to $4,022.3, and silver futures climbed 0.1% to $56.25.In economic news, the University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index rose to 54.4 in July from 49.5 in June, above expectations for 51.0 in a Bloomberg-compiled survey.Michigan said that despite the highest index reading since February, consumers remain dissatisfied due to high prices, adding that it would be difficult to maintain the recent improvement in sentiment if gasoline prices rebound. "Interviews for this release spanned June 23 to July 13, with more than 70% completed before the resumption of US strikes against Iran on July 7 and the subsequent increase in gas prices."Michigan poll respondents saw one-year inflation expectations at 4.2%, down from 4.6% in June, while five-year inflation expectations remained at 3.3%.
(Updates with market moves at the end of the day.)US equities rose Wednesday, driving major indexes higher for a second straight day as traders digested another softer-than-expected inflation report.The Nasdaq Composite closed 0.6% higher at 26,269.2, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.4% to 7,572.4. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3% to settle at 52,658.6. Among sectors, communication services saw the biggest gain, while utilities led the laggards.Technology giant Apple (AAPL) was the best performer on the Dow, up 4%. The iPhone maker has held talks with bankers in recent months about possible acquisitions of chip companies, The Information reported, citing unnamed sources.Other tech majors also advanced, with Alphabet's (GOOGL) class A shares, Amazon.com (AMZN), and Microsoft (MSFT) following Apple on the Dow as the top performers.In economic news, US producer prices unexpectedly dropped on a monthly basis in June amid a steep decline in the cost of energy products, official data showed."We expect to see another weak reading for the July (producer prices index), even though global oil prices have moved higher in the past week," Oxford Economics said in a note.On Tuesday, government data showed that US consumer prices decreased last month for the first time in more than six years amid lower energy costs."While still nominally elevated at a dangerously high level, the relative improvement in inflation in June emboldens the more dovish argument that price pressures are already cooling and could retreat further into year-end as the lingering impact from tariffs falls off and energy prices potentially normalize amid -- still tentative -- but ongoing, US-Iran peace negotiations," Stifel said in a note Wednesday.The probability that the Fed will leave its benchmark lending rate unchanged later this month rose to nearly 90% Wednesday from 84% Tuesday, according to the CME FedWatch tool.Inflation should ease in the next few quarters as energy prices are expected to trend back closer to where they were before the US-Iran war began, New York Fed President John Williams said.Inflation is more likely to accelerate than cool given price pressures arising from an artificial intelligence boom and major supply shocks, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook said. Separately, New York Fed President John Williams said that inflation should ease in the next few quarters as energy prices retreat.West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 1.2% at $80.29 a barrel in Wednesday late-afternoon trade, while Brent rose 1.3% to $85.80.The US military conducted fresh strikes on Iran on Wednesday as tensions flare over the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, the US Central Command said.US Treasury yields were lower, with the two-year rate down 5.2 basis points at 4.14% and the 10-year rate falling 3.2 basis points to 4.55%.In other company news, PayPal (PYPL) shares jumped 17%, the top gainer on the S&P 500, after Reuters reported that Stripe and Advent International have offered to acquire PayPal in a deal that would value the payments giant at more than $53 billion.Pentair (PNR) shares slid 15%, the worst performer on the S&P 500. The water treatment company late Tuesday reported preliminary second-quarter results below market estimates and lowered its full-year outlook amid headwinds related to its pool segment.Gold edged down 0.2% to $4,060.80 per troy ounce, while silver lost 1.6% to $58.17 per ounce.
Tech stocks were lower late Wednesday afternoon, with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) falling 1.3% and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) dropping 2.3%.The Philadelphia Semiconductor index shed 2.4%.In sector news, DeepSeek is planning a new fundraising round at a valuation of about 500 billion yuan ($74 billion) ahead of a potential listing on Shanghai's STAR Market, Reuters reported. According to the report, DeepSeek is looking to raise up to 50 billion yuan just weeks after the funding round in June. The startup has begun early discussions on a potential IPO, targeting an initial filing this year, although the plans remain subject to change, multiple reports said.In corporate news, Palantir (PLTR) Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar said China's latest AI models have been developed partly through the unauthorized use of technology created by AI companies in the US, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing his interview. He added that these Chinese open-source AI models are largely the result of "distillation attacks," the report said, adding that the technique refers to when developers use results from existing AI systems to train new models with similar capabilities at a lower cost. Palantir shares were up 0.3%.Nvidia (NVDA) has shipped only a limited number of H200 AI chips to China and Hong Kong despite the issuance of US export licenses, Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Jeffrey Kessler told a congressional hearing on Tuesday. Nvidia shares were down 0.2%.Microsoft (MSFT) is overhauling its cybersecurity business to capitalize on corporate demand for AI-powered security tools, The Information reported. Hayete Gallot, who took over the security business in February, has directed teams to build AI security products while cutting some traditional offerings and consolidating engineering teams, according to the report. Microsoft shares rose 2.9%.Apple (AAPL) has held talks with bankers in recent months about possible deals for chip companies, as it looks to enhance its efforts to build server chips for running AI, The Information reported. Apple shares climbed 3.7%.
Microsoft (MSFT) is overhauling its cybersecurity business to capitalize on corporate demand for AI-powered security tools, The Information reported Wednesday, citing people with direct knowledge of the changes.Hayete Gallot, who took over the security business in February, has directed teams to build AI security products while cutting some traditional offerings and consolidating engineering teams, according to the report.Gallot cut several hundred roles within the security group as part of a broader Microsoft layoff earlier this month, the report said, citing one of the people.At least nine corporate vice presidents who reported to former security head Charlie Bell have left the company this year, according to someone with knowledge of the moves cited in the report.The Information reported, citing a longtime Microsoft executive, that Gallot is prioritizing products such as Security Copilot and tools that scan code for vulnerabilities, while reducing investment in lower-revenue products like Sentinel.Microsoft did not immediately respond too a request for comment from.(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)Price: $395.44, Change: $+10.51, Percent Change: +2.73%
US benchmark equity indexes were higher intraday, aided by certain mega-cap technology stocks, as traders parsed the latest inflation data.The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.5% at 26,246.1 after midday Wednesday, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.3% to 7,568.2. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% to 52,620.4. Among sectors, communication services saw the biggest gain, while energy led the laggards.Tech giant Apple (AAPL) was the best performer on the Dow, up 4%. The iPhone maker has held talks with bankers in recent months about possible deals for chip companies, The Information reported, citing unnamed sources.Other tech majors Alphabet's (GOOGL) class A shares, Amazon.com (AMZN), and Microsoft (MSFT) followed Apple on the Dow as the top performers.In economic news, US producer prices unexpectedly dropped on a monthly basis in June amid a steep decline in the cost of energy products, official data showed."We expect to see another weak reading for the July (producer prices index), even though global oil prices have moved higher in the past week," Oxford Economics said in a note.On Tuesday, government data showed that US consumer prices decreased last month for the first time in more than six years amid lower energy costs."While still nominally elevated at a dangerously high level, the relative improvement in inflation in June emboldens the more dovish argument that price pressures are already cooling and could retreat further into year-end as the lingering impact from tariffs falls off and energy prices potentially normalize amid -- still tentative -- but ongoing, US-Iran peace negotiations," Stifel said in a note Wednesday.The probability that the Fed will leave its benchmark lending rate unchanged later this month rose to nearly 90% Wednesday from 84% Tuesday, according to the CME FedWatch tool.Inflation should ease in the next few quarters as energy prices are expected to trend back closer to where they were before the US-Iran war began, New York Fed President John Williams said.West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down 0.4% at $78.99 a barrel intraday, while Brent dropped 0.3% to $84.45.The US military conducted fresh strikes on Iran for 90 minutes, as tensions flare over the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, CNN reported Wednesday, citing the US Central Command.US Treasury yields were lower intraday, with the two-year rate down 6.1 basis points at 4.13% and the 10-year rate falling 3.8 basis points to 4.55%.In other company news, PayPal (PYPL) shares jumped 16%, the top gainer on the S&P 500, after Reuters reported that Stripe and Advent International have offered to acquire PayPal in a deal that would value the payments giant at more than $53 billion.Pentair (PNR) shares slid 15%, the worst performer on the S&P 500. The water treatment company late Tuesday reported preliminary second-quarter results below market estimates and lowered its full-year outlook amid headwinds related to its pool segment.Gold edged down 0.7% to $4,042.70 per troy ounce, while silver lost 3.2% to $57.22 per ounce.
Tech stocks were higher late Tuesday afternoon, with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) up 1.4% and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) adding 1.9%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor index climbed up 2.9%.In corporate news, the US has approved purchases of advanced AI chips from Nvidia (NVDA) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) by a ZTE unit and two other Chinese firms, Reuters reported. Nvidia shares gained 3.8%, and AMD added 2.6%.CleanSpark (CLSK) has signed a 20-year infrastructure lease agreement with a global technology firm for its Sandersville, Georgia, data center campus in a deal expected to generate about $6.6 billion in contracted revenue over the initial term, the company said Tuesday. CleanSpark shares jumped past 8%.IBM (IBM) shares tumbled past 24% after its preliminary Q2 results fell short of market expectations, with Chief Executive Arvind Krishna calling the performance "disappointing."Oaktree Capital Management-backed Pure Data Centres is building a data center campus in Finland that is expected to be used by customers including Microsoft (MSFT), Bloomberg reported. Pure Data Centres is investing 1.5 billion euros ($1.7 billion) in the first phase of the project, the report said. Microsoft shares were down 1.4%.
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