Microsoft stock is back in focus this Black Friday, with investors weighing a softer regulatory backdrop in Europe against massive AI spending and fresh growth in healthcare and cloud.
Microsoft stock today: price, session context, and key levels
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) last closed at $485.50 on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, up 1.78% from the prior session’s $476.99. [1]
That close leaves the shares:
- Around 8–13% below their recent highs – the latest closing all‑time high is about $541, while the intraday peak topped $555 earlier this year. [2]
- Within a 52‑week range of roughly $345 to $555. [3]
In pre‑market trading this morning, quotes around $488–489 per share indicated a modest gain of about 0.6% versus Wednesday’s close, as tracked by several real‑time data providers. [4]
Key market context:
- Today is Black Friday, and U.S. stock markets – including the Nasdaq, where MSFT trades – are open on a shortened schedule, closing at 1:00 p.m. ET. [5]
- Major U.S. indices are on track for one of their best weeks since mid‑year, helped by hopes for another interest‑rate cut and solid macro data. [6]
From a valuation standpoint, Microsoft now sits at roughly $3.6–3.8 trillion in market cap, with a price‑to‑earnings multiple in the mid‑30s, depending on the data source – high, but broadly in line with other mega‑cap AI leaders. [7]
Options markets are pricing in relatively contained near‑term volatility: for contracts keyed to today’s date, implied volatility around 25% suggests a one‑day range where there’s about a two‑thirds chance MSFT finishes between roughly $457 and $489. [8]
Big legal overhang eases: Google drops EU cloud complaint
The headline catalyst for Microsoft stock today is regulatory rather than strictly financial.
- Alphabet’s Google withdrew its EU antitrust complaint targeting Microsoft’s cloud business Azure. The complaint, originally filed with the European Commission, accused Microsoft of locking enterprise customers into its ecosystem via software licensing and cloud bundling. [9]
- The withdrawal comes as Brussels launches a broader probe into major cloud providers, including Microsoft and Amazon, under the EU’s evolving competition and Digital Markets Act frameworks. [10]
Separate developments reinforce the sense of easing legal pressure:
- In France, the competition authority recently dismissed a complaint by local search engine Qwant, effectively clearing Microsoft of those particular antitrust accusations. [11]
- A fresh analysis of “regulatory tailwinds” in Europe argues that while scrutiny is rising, the new rules may in some ways entrench the largest, most compliant providers – with Microsoft in a strong position thanks to scale and deep enterprise ties. [12]
Equity commentary today frames this as a clear win for Microsoft stock: several pieces note that the end of Google’s targeted complaint removes one of the more visible legal overhangs around Azure’s growth strategy, even as broader cloud regulation continues. [13]
For investors, the takeaway is nuanced:
- Positive: one high‑profile dispute is now off the table, reducing the risk of forced concessions specific to Google’s allegations.
- Ongoing risk: Microsoft still faces sector‑wide EU investigations and gatekeeper obligations that could shape pricing, bundling, and data‑sovereignty rules over the next few years. [14]
AI and medical expansion: Microsoft doubles down on high‑value verticals
Beyond cloud regulation, AI remains the core driver of the Microsoft investment story, and several pieces of new coverage on November 28 highlight how deep that push now runs – especially in healthcare.
A widely circulated article today notes that Microsoft is pushing deeper into medical AI, with new initiatives and partnerships in clinical documentation, imaging, and hospital workflow tools. Analysts cited in the piece describe MSFT as one of the top AI stocks on Wall Street’s buy lists, thanks to its scale, data access, and cloud distribution. [15]
This builds on the company’s blowout fiscal Q1 2026 results, reported at the end of October:
- Azure and other cloud services revenue surged 40% year over year, driving Intelligent Cloud revenue to $30.9 billion, up 28%. [16]
- Total revenue hit $77.7 billion (+18% YoY), with Microsoft Cloud revenue at $49.1 billion (+26% YoY), both ahead of expectations. [17]
- On the earnings call, management highlighted that AI workloads on Azure are growing so fast that capacity remains supply‑constrained, even as new data centers come online. [18]
There is, however, a cost:
- Microsoft’s AI infrastructure capex reached roughly $35 billion in the quarter, up about 74% year over year, largely spent on GPUs and high‑end data center hardware. [19]
- Several analyses describe this as a “physics problem” for the stock: margins are under pressure today so the company can capture what management calls the “new economics of AI” in the future. [20]
Recent commentary also underscores how broad Microsoft’s AI footprint has become:
- Agent 365 and new Copilot upgrades unveiled at Ignite 2025 sparked a 1.78% rise in the shares, according to same‑week coverage – reinforcing the idea that investors still reward credible AI product execution. [21]
- New analysis pieces pitch MSFT as the AI stock to own even if an “AI bubble” burst, citing Azure’s growth, sticky enterprise relationships, and diversified revenue. [22]
- Microsoft is also expanding AI infrastructure partnerships, including a $9.7 billion, five‑year cloud deal with IREN and multi‑billion arrangements with Nebius, plus collaborations with Nvidia and Anthropic. [23]
All of this helps explain why, despite volatility, Wall Street’s fundamental stance on MSFT remains broadly bullish.
Governance, CEO pay, and leadership in the AI era
Corporate governance is another fresh talking point today.
A new analysis from Simply Wall St, dated November 28, suggests shareholders are unlikely to approve a large increase in CEO Satya Nadella’s compensation at the upcoming December 5 AGM. The piece highlights: [24]
- Nadella’s pay is already heavily equity‑linked, aligning his incentives with long‑term share performance.
- Investor focus is less on headline pay and more on sustaining returns amid elevated AI spending and regulatory risk.
At the same time, a leaked internal organizational chart, reported this week, shows 16 top executives directly steering Microsoft’s AI race, underscoring how much of the leadership bench is now oriented around cloud and AI. The report emphasizes: [25]
- CFO Amy Hood as the “gatekeeper” of the multibillion‑dollar AI build‑out, with record capex highlighted internally as requiring “intensity, clarity and bold execution.” [26]
- A re‑stacked Cloud + AI organization designed to accelerate Azure, Copilot, and agentic AI platforms. [27]
Not all leadership news has been positive:
- Recent reports confirmed that Microsoft lost two senior AI‑infrastructure leaders, amid mounting data‑center pressures. [28]
- Yet market reaction has been muted; one investor note pointed out that shares rose about 2% on the day the departures were reported, suggesting confidence that Microsoft’s AI strategy is bigger than any single executive. [29]
Net effect: governance and leadership are under active scrutiny, but so far they appear more like supporting factorsthan major overhangs for the stock.
Institutional flows and analyst sentiment: still a “core holding”
Fresh 13F‑style filings released today point to continued heavy institutional ownership in Microsoft:
- Chilton Capital Management disclosed a position worth about $156 million in MSFT, even after trimming holdings modestly in Q2. [30]
- Other recent filings show firms like Cabot Wealth Management and Brookwood Investment Group either adding to or maintaining large Microsoft stakes, with several reports calling it a top‑10 portfolio position. [31]
Analyst coverage remains robust:
- A new note from Baird initiated or re‑started coverage on Microsoft recently, highlighting its role in quantum computing and AI and slotting MSFT among “best ideas” in large‑cap tech. [32]
- A 24/7 Wall St piece published yesterday laid out stock‑price predictions for 2026, arguing that continued cloud and Copilot growth could support further upside from current levels. [33]
- Across Wall Street, consensus price targets commonly sit in the $600+ range, implying double‑digit upside from the mid‑$480s, even after a strong multi‑year run. [34]
In short, MSFT remains a default “core” AI and cloud holding for many institutions, despite its sheer size and elevated valuation multiples.
Product, ecosystem, and Black Friday headlines that matter (and those that mostly don’t)
A handful of product and ecosystem stories also intersect with Microsoft’s stock narrative today:
- Xbox and gaming
- The Xbox November 2025 update rolls out Gaming Copilot (beta) on mobile, expands full‑screen experiences on Windows 11 handhelds, and improves cloud gaming resolution controls – including broader rollout into India. [35]
- These changes deepen Microsoft’s AI and cloud footprint in gaming, though gaming remains a smaller revenue contributor relative to Azure and Microsoft 365.
- Messaging platforms and AI assistants
- Meta’s updated WhatsApp policies will ban third‑party AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot on the platform after January 15, 2026, limiting one popular distribution channel for Microsoft’s assistant. [36]
- Data resilience and enterprise AI adoption
- In the UK, Microsoft partner Zenzero hosted an event urging businesses to build stronger data foundations and resilience as they adopt AI, emphasizing governance, Power BI integration, and cybersecurity. [37]
- This dovetails with a broader theme from recent Microsoft blogs and Ignite sessions: AI deployment is only as strong as the underlying data estate. [38]
- Consumer‑facing Black Friday noise
- Aggressive discounts on Surface Pro devices, Xbox hardware, and lifetime Microsoft Office licenses are grabbing tech‑shopping headlines today. [39]
- While good for marketing and ecosystem lock‑in, these promotions typically don’t move MSFT stock much on their own; investors focus more on recurring cloud and AI revenue.
For traders, these stories mostly shape the long‑term narrative rather than intraday price action – but they reinforce how pervasive Microsoft’s ecosystem has become across work, gaming, and consumer productivity.
Key things for MSFT investors to watch after today
Looking beyond this shortened Black Friday session (28.11.2025), here are the main catalysts on the horizon:
- Next earnings report – Microsoft is scheduled to release fiscal Q2 2026 results around early February 2026(current calendars point to early February). [40]
- EU and global cloud regulation – Follow‑through from today’s news on:
- The withdrawal of Google’s complaint; and
- Broader EU cloud investigations and DMA gatekeeper designations that could impact Azure pricing and bundling. [41]
- AI infrastructure economics – Whether Microsoft can:
- Keep Azure growing near 40%,
- Manage capex near or above the recent $35 billion quarterly run‑rate, and
- Stabilize margins as AI services scale. [42]
- Healthcare and industry‑specific AI – Progress in medical AI deployments and other verticals will be watched closely as potential new durable revenue streams. [43]
- Corporate governance and compensation – Outcomes of the December 5 AGM, particularly any shareholder pushback on executive compensation or AI‑related risk disclosures. [44]
Bottom line
On November 28, 2025, Microsoft stock is trading near $485–490 per share, just below record territory but comfortably above last year’s levels, in a shortened Black Friday session that caps a strong Thanksgiving‑week for equities overall. [45]
The dominant themes for MSFT today are:
- A clear, stock‑friendly legal win as Google drops its EU cloud complaint. [46]
- Ongoing AI‑driven growth, with Azure up 40% and medical AI emerging as a high‑value frontier. [47]
- A balancing act between massive AI capex and investor expectations for sustainable margins and responsible governance. [48]
For now, Wall Street largely continues to treat Microsoft as a cornerstone AI and cloud holding, even as the bar for execution keeps rising.
Note: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Always do your own research or consult a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions.
References
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