Microsoft Stock Moves Higher After Job Cuts

The shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) are up 0.4% at $204.80 this morning, after the technology giant announced late on Thursday it trimmed its workforce across various geographies and teams as it entered a new fiscal year on July 1. The software company declined to elaborate on which roles had been eliminated, their numbers or locations, but it reportedly cut just under 1,000 jobs across the business this week.

Microsoft stock has fully recovered from its late-March lows near the $132 level. Since then, shares have been on a rapid climb, breaking records on a monthly basis with consistent support from the equity's 20-day moving average. The security's latest all-time-high came in at $216.38 on July 9, but shares have since cooled off and found overhead pressure at the $210 mark. Nonetheless, MSFT is up 49.6% year-over-year.

Analysts were majorly optimistic toward the equity coming into today. Of the 25 in coverage, 24 sport a "buy" or better rating, and only one carries a tepid "hold." Meanwhile, the consensus 12-month price target of $212.03  is a 3.5% premium to current levels. 

That sentiment is echoed in the options pits, where calls are preferred. MSFT sports a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 3.00 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). This ratio sits higher than 83% of readings from the last year, suggesting a much healthier appetite for calls than what is typically seen.