MSFT Stock Bucks Iran-Linked Sell-Off: Microsoft Releases Mac-Style Search On Windows 11

• After a terrible first half, MSFT stock is seeing momentum in July.
• Stocktwits sentiment for the stock remained ‘bearish’, with traders eyeing $400 as a crucial breakout level.
• Microsoft is scheduled to report its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings on July 29.

Microsoft Corp.’s shares rose 1.5% on Monday, bucking the market-wide selloff linked to a fresh escalation in the U.S.-Iran conflict.

After emerging as one of the weakest performers in its peer group during the first half of 2026, the stock has gained fresh momentum in July, catching the attention of retail traders.

Microsoft Revamps Search

On Monday, Microsoft announced a major update to its iconic Search Box in Windows 11 that aims to make the experience better and less cluttered. The new search provides more accurate results by prioritizing on-device information and files before reaching the web, and a streamlined interface free of recommended content and ads.

Currently, the search menu shows recent searches alongside several tiles in the right pane, including the image of the day, daily quizzes, trending searches, and game recommendations. The revamped search will display only recent searches.

Microsoft said it is cleaning up web results as well. The search menu will surface the “most relevant answer” first, rather than showing “related products and promotions.” 

The experience is rolling out to Windows insiders in the Experimental Channel, Microsoft’s early-access testing channel.

Retail View On MSFT

On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment for MSFT remained ‘bearish’ as of late Monday, with traders eyeing $400 as a crucial breakout level.

“$MSFT I’ll go long on Microsoft when it breaks $400. Until then, bearish pattern! People don’t realize you can make money playing both puts and calls,” a trader said.

Another wrote: “$MSFT dipping under $400 today has plenty of people watching the tape closer than usual. When a name this size pulls back, the question everyone starts asking is where the big money starts stepping back in. Worth tracking here.”

MSFT stock gained nearly 5% in July to $390.99. It declined 17% in the first six months of the year.

Traders Set Up For MSFT’s Q4 Results 

Microsoft is scheduled to report its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings on July 29. Analysts expect revenue to rise 15% to $87.66 billion and adjusted profit to increase 16% to $4.24 per share, according to analysts' estimates from Koyfin.

Currently, 53 out of 56 analysts rate MSFT ‘Buy’ or higher, and three rate it ‘Hold,’ per Koyfin data. Their average price target of $559.59 implies a 45% upside from the stock’s last close.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

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