Microsoft leading the AI arms race, ChatGPT ‘adds another growth leg’ – Wedbush

Wedbush analysts told investors in a note Thursday that ChatGPT adds another growth leg to the Microsoft (NASDAQ:) story. As a result, they raised the firm’s price target on the stock to $340 from $325, maintaining an Outperform rating.

Alongside the AI monetization opportunity, the analysts also noted that stable cloud deal flow makes them more bullish on the name, which remains on the firm’s Best Ideas List.

“Over the last few weeks, in our numerous conversations with Microsoft customers, partners, and field checks, it has become crystal clear to us that the monetization opportunities around deploying AI and ChatGPT in the cloud is a transformational opportunity across the industry with Redmond in the drivers seat,” said Ives, who stated that Microsoft is leading AI arms race with monetization the next step.”

“We believe that Microsoft is in a unique position to gain share in the cloud market while deploying additional AI capabilities that we estimate could expand Redmond’s total addressable market around cloud by 35%-40% over the coming years,” the analysts concluded.

Microsoft shares are down 1.78% on Thursday at the time of writing.