12 Best FAANG+ Stocks to Invest in Right Now

2. Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT)

Number of hedge funds: 279

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a giant in the tech industry, offering a broad array of software, services, devices, and solutions designed to empower individuals and organizations to achieve productivity and computing prowess. Its cloud computing platform, Azure, is a major player in the cloud services market, providing scalable and flexible solutions for businesses of all sizes. Additionally, Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) offers products such as Microsoft 365, Windows, LinkedIn, Dynamics business solutions, server products, and gaming. Its market cap currently stands at $3.1 trillion, up from $1.3 trillion five years ago.

The company is currently focusing on integrating AI across its products to enhance data processing capabilities and operational efficiency, which should increase demand for its offerings. It has been aggressively expanding its cloud services, with Azure experiencing substantial growth driven by the rising demand for cloud computing and AI solutions. In its Q2 FY 2025 (FY ending June 2025) report on January 29, Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) reported a total revenue growth of 12% year-over-year (YoY), with cloud revenue growing 21% and achieving a gross margin of 70%. Company CFO Amy Hood remains optimistic about AI-driven cloud services growth, stating:

“Revenue will continue to be driven by Azure, which, as a reminder, can have quarterly variability primarily from in-period revenue recognition depending on the mix of contracts. In Azure, we expect Q3 revenue growth to be between 31% and 32% in constant currency driven by strong demand for our portfolio of services. As we shared in October, the contribution from our AI services will grow from increased AI capacity coming online. In non-AI services, healthy growth continues, although we expect ongoing impact through H2 as we work to address the execution challenges noted earlier.”