Microsoft Stock Upgraded To Neutral But Analysts Remain Cautious

Microsoft Corp. was upgraded to neutral from underperform at Bank of America Merrill Lynch on Thursday. The bank also raised its stock target on Microsoft to $46 from $39 previously, which implies a 4% improvement from Wednesday's closing price. The upgrade reflects easier year-over-year comparisons in upcoming quarters and potential upside in its commercial cloud business. However, the analysts still have "a number of concerns," notably with Windows 10 and the potential for a longer-than-expected transition to the cloud. Shares of Microsoft were up 0.9% to $44.66 in premarket trade. They are down 0.5% over the last three months, versus a 7.5% decline for the broader S&P 500.