Alphabet Cloud Surge Triggers Stifel to Cut Microsoft (MSFT) Rating from Buy to Hold

Alphabet (GOOGL-US) reported Q4 cloud revenue growth of 48% (vs. 34% in Q3), prompting Stifel’s Brad Reback to下调 Microsoft (MSFT-US) from Buy to Hold. The analyst sees limited near-term catalysts and expects Azure growth to trail escalating capital spending (up 66% in Q1 after adjustments). Microsoft’s cloud growth, adjusted for currency, slowed to 38% in Q1 from 39% in Q3. The firm is constraining Azure expansion due to AI chip supply constraints, allocating some chips to internal development, management said. On February 5, 2026, Microsoft’s shares fell 4.9% on weakness following a财报-driven selloff, while Alphabet rose同期 70%. Over the past six months, Microsoft has declined about 25%, versus Alphabet’s 70% gain. Reback highlights headwinds: competition from Gemini and Claude, reduced perceived advantage in OpenAI collaboration, and OpenAI commitments representing roughly 45% of remaining履约obligations. However, he maintains Microsoft’s long-term cloud positioning remains strong.