This "Magnificent Seven" Stock Is the Worst Performer of 2026. Is It Finally a Buy?

The "Magnificent Seven" began 2026 successful a hole. Every subordinate slid successful the year's archetypal fewer months arsenic investors started questioning however overmuch they had been paying for promises tied to artificial quality (AI). Since then, however, astir of the radical has climbed back. As of this writing, the 7 are collectively higher connected the year, the S&P 500 is up much than 8%, and Alphabet has jumped much than 20%.

But 1 sanction has been near retired of the rebound. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is down astir 13% truthful acold successful 2026, the worst showing successful the group. Even Tesla, which had been vying with Microsoft for past spot earlier successful the year, has since pulled up -- arsenic person chipmaker Nvidia, caller disconnected different beardown quarter, and iPhone shaper Apple.

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What makes the spread antithetic is that the concern itself hasn't stumbled. So, with the banal sitting astatine the backmost of the pack, is the bundle and unreality giant's banal yet worthy buying?

A concern that keeps speeding up

Microsoft's fiscal 3rd 4th of 2026 (the play ended March 31, 2026) didn't look similar a institution successful trouble. Revenue roseate 18% twelvemonth implicit twelvemonth to $82.9 cardinal -- an acceleration from 17% maturation the anterior quarter, and operating income climbed 20% to $38.4 billion. Further, the bundle giant's non-GAAP (adjusted) net per stock roseate astir 21%.

Even more, Microsoft said its AI products present transportation an yearly gross tally complaint of much than $37 cardinal -- up 123% from a twelvemonth earlier. Behind it is everything from extracurricular developers gathering connected Azure, the company's unreality computing business, to Microsoft's ain Copilot assistant, which crossed 20 cardinal paid seats aft adding 5 cardinal successful a azygous quarter.

Management besides signaled a alteration successful however it plans to complaint for each of this.

"Any per-user concern of ours, whether it's productivity, coding, security, volition go a per-user and usage business," CEO Satya Nadella said during the company's fiscal third-quarter net call. In plain terms, Microsoft wants to support collecting its acquainted per-seat fees portion adding charges based connected however overmuch customers really thin connected its AI tools -- a exemplary it's already rolling out, starting with usage-based pricing for its GitHub coding assistant.

And don't hide that Microsoft has a astir 27% involvement successful OpenAI and a non-exclusive licence to its exertion done 2032.