Microsoft Corp. (MSFT, Financial)
One of the largest companies in the world by market capitalization, Microsoft has managed to continue to grow and thrive despite the pandemic. The stock returned over 40% in 2020 behind strong growth from their Office suite of products, cloud businesses and gaming. Their cloud computing service, Azure, grew 48% last quarter. The work-from-home movement helped increase demand for their products as it further accelerated the trend towards digitization. Microsoft has invested heavily in the gaming industry with their Xbox system and their recent acquisition of ZeniMax Media. The gaming industry is already larger than the film industry and the global sport sector combined and is projected to continue its explosive growth over the coming years. Despite their investments Microsoft is still flexible with cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of nearly $138 billion as of their most recent quarter.
From Jeff Auxier (Trades, Portfolio)'s Auxier Asset Management fourth-quarter 2020 shareholder letter.
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