![\"Group](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/eaa563863e3a66138ea048c06aab988f.jpeg\")
Image source: Getty Images. Microsoft is delivering solid results <\/p>\n
Microsoft recently announced its fiscal 2026 Q3 results, and they were outstanding. Revenue was up 18% year over year, and operating income was up 20%. There’s not a whole lot to be disappointed with there, as it conveys a strong company getting stronger.<\/p>\n
Azure, Microsoft’s cloud computing<\/a> business, is one of the biggest ways AI spending shows up. Clients rent computing power on Azure to train and run AI models, making it a massive revenue driver for Microsoft. Azure’s revenue grew 40% in the quarter.<\/p>\n Microsoft’s AI business outside of cloud computing is also booming. It sits at a $37 billion annual run rate, and grew at a jaw-dropping 123% year-over-year pace.<\/p>\n From that standpoint, it seems pretty clear that Microsoft is doing well as a business, yet it isn’t translating into stock performance.<\/p>\n However, a company can only have incredible business results and poor share price performance for so long before the stock gets too cheap and the broader market takes notice. I think we’re nearing that point.<\/p>\n My preferred valuation metric for Microsoft’s stock is the operating price-to-earnings ratio. Instead of using net income as the denominator, it uses operating income. Operating income isn’t affected by one-time expenses such as tax events or gains on investments. Trading at about 21 times operating income, Microsoft is around the cheapest it has been in the past decade.<\/p>\n Microsoft is operating at a high level and trading at a low valuation. It’s hard to ask for much more, which is why I think Microsoft is a top AI investment<\/a> now. It may take a bit of time for it to come back into favor with the market, but when it does, it will deliver impressive upside.<\/p>\n Should you buy stock in Microsoft right now? <\/p>\n Before you buy stock in Microsoft, consider this:<\/p>\n The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the\u00a010 best stocks<\/a> for investors to buy now\u2026 and Microsoft wasn\u2019t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.<\/p>\n Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation,\u00a0you\u2019d have $490,864!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you\u2019d have $1,216,789!*<\/p>\n Now, it\u2019s worth noting\u00a0Stock Advisor\u2019s total average return is 963% \u2014 a market-crushing outperformance compared to 201% for the S&P 500.\u00a0Don’t miss the latest top 10 list, available with\u00a0Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.<\/p>\n See the 10 stocks \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n *Stock Advisor returns as of May 6, 2026. <\/p>\n Keithen Drury<\/a> has positions in Microsoft. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/a> MSFT Operating PE Ratio<\/a> data by YCharts.<\/a> <\/p>\n