Morgan Stanley said a series of tech stocks with overweight ratings are worth buying ahead of earnings. CNBC Pro combed through the company’s research to find the top contenders for quarterly results. These include Fortinet, Microsoft, Apple, and Atlassian. Microsoft Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss is sticking with the tech giant ahead of earnings. In fact, Microsoft stock is set to rise nearly 14% in 2024, but the company said its stock price is too attractive to ignore at current levels. “Investor sentiment has become even more negative as ‘walls of uncertainty’ loom over gross margins, capital spending, monetization of GenAI, and (building) a relationship with OpenAI,” Weiss wrote. The analyst remained bullish on the company’s Azure cloud computing service, reminding investors that Microsoft’s artificial intelligence tailwinds are huge. He said, “Ultimately, we expect there to be a slight upside to F1Q’s outperformance, but a major factor in stock price outperformance will be investor sentiment regarding F2H’s Azure acceleration.” I think it will increase trust,” he added. The company will announce its quarterly results on October 30th. Atlassian Weiss also said the software developer’s stock remains “attractive.” Despite Atlassian’s stock price falling more than 20% in 2024, the company views it as a top candidate. Growth concerns have been plaguing stocks lately, but Weiss said those concerns are overdone. “We see a path back to above 20% growth, supported by product portfolio expansion, refocused marketing to increase cross-sell/up-sell, and sustained pricing power,” he wrote. Additionally, Weiss said the company’s findings indicate that “the demand environment for TEAM is generally stable, with our partners generally meeting or exceeding expectations.” The company called Atlassian a “unique software asset” poised for margin expansion, adding that investors should continue to buy on the bullshit. Atlassian is scheduled to release its quarterly results on October 31st. Apple The company is also backing front-runner Apple ahead of quarterly results on October 31, despite reports of mixed demand for the iPhone 16. Analyst Eric Woodring said: “We haven’t seen any iPhone production cuts yet, but the below-consensus December Q forecast reflects conservatism amid mixed iPhone data points. ” he said. Still, the analyst said investors should buy the stock ahead of the quarterly report. “We expect Apple to post strong sales and bottom line growth in the September quarter,” he added. Woodring acknowledged that the structure could be unstable in the short term, but said the results were unlikely to sway shareholders anyway. “Near-term developments are unlikely to change the bulls’ or bears’ view of AAPL or Apple Intelligence, so we don’t think the stock’s underperformance will last long,” he said. Apple stock will rise 20% in 2024. Microsoft: Investor sentiment has become even more negative due to a ‘wall of uncertainty’ around gross margins, capital expenditures, monetization of GenAI, and building a relationship with OpenAI…Netally, we outperformed our first quarter performance. , we expect to see modest upside.”However, consider that a big factor in the stock’s outperformance will be increased investor confidence in F2H Azure’s acceleration. ” Apple: “While we have not seen any iPhone production cuts yet, our below-consensus December Q forecast reflects conservatism amid mixed iPhone data.…Apple expects September Q sales We expect the company to deliver strong earnings and bottom line performance…in the near term.”This move is unlikely to change the views of bulls or bears on AAPL or Apple Intelligence, so we expect the stock to underperform. I don’t think the form will last long. ” Fortinet “Top Pick: FTNT – Strong upside with refresh cycles and upsells to large installed base.…In the short term, our CQ3 checks show steady demand and no sign of a large-scale refresh Looking ahead, however, stronger budget flash in Q4 and easy comps through the first half of next year should accelerate the top line. , the refresh activity should ramp up starting in the second half of 2025.” Atlassian “…supported by an expanding product portfolio, increased cross-selling/upselling with marketing refocus, and sustained pricing power. …with the stock trading at 26x EV/CY26 FCF, we believe this unique software asset has sustained growth of 20% with margin expansion. TEAM’s demand environment is generally stable, with partners generally meeting or exceeding expectations in our pre-preview research. It has been shown that…
