Microsoft (MSFT) shares experienced a significant surge during extended trading on Wednesday following the release of its fiscal third-quarter results, which exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. This growth was largely driven by the company’s cloud business.
CEO Satya Nadella highlighted that the Intelligent Cloud segment, which includes the Azure cloud computing platform, continues to thrive due to businesses’ demands to increase output, cut costs, and accelerate growth. Microsoft remains focused on innovation across its AI stack.
Despite a 15% rise from its April low, Microsoft shares are still down 6% year-to-date as of Wednesday’s close. Concerns over tariffs and reduced AI spending continue to impact investor sentiment.
In after-hours trading, Microsoft shares climbed nearly 7% to approximately $423.
A closer examination of Microsoft’s chart reveals key price levels to monitor. Following a successful retest of the falling wedge pattern’s top trendline, shares moved sharply higher, potentially signaling a bullish reversal.
Notably, Wednesday’s trading volume was the highest in three weeks, indicating significant institutional interest.
Two critical overhead areas to watch include the $442 level, which may act as resistance near a trendline linking several peaks from September to January. A decisive close above this level could propel shares toward the $468 area, near the stock’s record high from last July.
Support levels worth monitoring during future retracements include the $395 level near Wednesday’s closing price and the $359 level near last week’s trough.
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