Microsoft, Cash Cushion

by admin on July 30th, 2009

As I post this on Tuesday night (US east coast time), news reports are that Microsoft (MSFT) is on the verge of a search deal with Yahoo. Previously, though, the big news with MSFT was it reporting disappointing earnings for the last quarter. That hasn’t hurt me so far, because I bought Microsoft below $19 and it remains in the low $20s.

Probably the best thing said about Microsoft (or most useful, IMHO) came in Alan Abelson’s weekly Barron’s column (scroll down):

Last week, as you’re no doubt aware, Microsoft reported sharply lower quarterly earnings (they were off 29%) and the first full year of lower sales (by 3%) since it went public back in 1986. Besides the recession, results were hurt by a variety of things, a bum market for computers and the resultant shrinkage in demand for software not least among them.

We checked in with Roundtable worthy Fred Hickey, who has been favorably disposed toward Microsoft (even while wary of techs as a group). Fred still feels friendly toward the stock, because he thinks some of the new products slated to hit the market this year, particularly Windows 7, shape up as pretty hot stuff. But, he says, patience is critical because the next quarter or two could prove bumpy going.

What we especially like about Microsoft is that it’s a mighty cash generator and, slump or no slump, its trove of the lovely green stuff over the past 12 months ended June 30 grew to a formidable $31.4 billion, from $23.7 billion. Nice comfortable cushion, come what may.

I’m not gonna say Microsoft is a screaming buy, because I doubt that it is. But it does demonstrate the fortunes of getting into a stock at a good price. And it having the finances to weather storms.