Microsoft is a company that has become synonymous with technology, owing to the fact that it has been a pioneer in many ways in this field. It is this tradition of innovation that has given it a wide following in the tech world, and which has also made it one of the most successful businesses in the world.
When thinking of investing in a company such as Microsoft it’s easy for most investors (especially the new ones) to use the success of the OS development division (Windows) to make their decisions on whether to buy their stocks or not. However, this is likely to be a bad move, since the company is made up of many other divisions. These include:
Windows
This is the most popular part of Windows. For a long time, this has been the OS of choice for many people around the world, and the fact that most people identify with it more than with other kinds of OS’s means that this is likely to be the trend for some time to come. It is also one of the company’s largest sources of income as well.
The Windows division also comprises other products and services including database management systems, server solutions for all kinds of businesses as well as messaging solutions. The company also provides IT training and consulting services as well.
The Business division
The business division of Microsoft is known to produce a large number of applications including the Microsoft Office suite. The fact that this is one of the most popular solutions of its kind simply goes to show that the company has very deep market penetration. In addition to the popular programs including Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint, the company also produces other programs including Visio, Project, MapPoint, InfoPath and many other products that are under the Microsoft Office banner.
The Entertainment/Devices Division
In the past, this division was not very lucrative, owing to the fact that other more established players including Sony had products that were very popular at that time. Currently, however, the gaming consoles that are produced by Microsoft are considered to be a force in the market, and compete strongly against other rivals including Sony’s PlayStation. This has become evident by the fact that the company’s recent release of the latest iteration of the Xbox gaming system was extremely hyped up. The fact that this has become one of the most lucrative divisions of Microsoft and the fact that it looks to perform strongly in future makes the company very appealing for investors. The company has also delved into the manufacture of smartphones as well, with the production of Mobile versions of Windows that are used on these devices.
The broad outlook of the company
As time goes by, there are many things that will affect the company’s appeal to investors. Broadly speaking, however, it should be in any serious investor’s portfolio. The fact that the company delved into the gaming and smartphones scenes is one of the strongest reasons for this. This is due to the fact that these are fast emerging markets, and the company can leverage on its culture of innovation to make some money out of this. This is something that will definitely trickle down to shareholders, who are likely to reap a lot from this, especially if the company plays its cards right in these emerging markets.
One other reason why Microsoft should be of interest to any investor is the fact that the company has also started getting involved in the manufacture of tablets and their OS’s. In fact, their latest iteration of Windows is designed in such a manner that it can work on tablets as well as it does on laptops and desktop computers. This in turn means that users who are used to using Windows on computers are likely to find it seamless to shift to tablets that have the same OS. The fact that millions of people around the world prefer to use Windows compared to other OS’s means that these tablets are likely to be very popular in future, which further increases the company’s worth.
In summary, despite the fact that the company’s Windows division has slowed down in growth, the other divisions have grown enough to make it a viable investment. You are likely to get a good return on investment if you choose to invest in Microsoft.