Billionaire investor Bill Ackman has revealed that his hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, has taken a significant new position in Microsoft, describing the software giant’s current valuation as “highly compelling” despite growing investor concerns around artificial intelligence competition and rising infrastructure spending.
Ackman disclosed that Pershing Square began accumulating Microsoft shares in February 2026 after the company’s stock declined sharply following weaker-than-expected cloud growth and increased AI-related capital expenditures. According to Ackman, the hedge fund was able to establish its position at roughly 21 times forward earnings, a valuation he considers attractive compared to Microsoft’s historical trading multiples.
The investment marks one of Pershing Square’s largest recent technology bets and signals Ackman’s continued confidence in Microsoft’s long-term AI strategy. He highlighted Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform and Microsoft 365 productivity suite as two of the world’s most valuable enterprise technology businesses, positioning the company at the center of enterprise AI adoption. Ackman also pointed to growing demand for products such as Copilot AI and cloud-based enterprise solutions as major future growth drivers.
Microsoft shares have declined more than 15% so far in 2026 as investors question whether the company can maintain its early lead in the AI race amid intensifying competition from rivals including Google, Amazon, and Anthropic. Concerns have also emerged around Microsoft’s evolving partnership with OpenAI after recent restructuring reduced Microsoft’s exclusive rights to distribute OpenAI technologies through Azure cloud services.
Ackman dismissed those concerns, arguing that Microsoft’s shift toward a more flexible, multi-model AI architecture could strengthen its long-term enterprise appeal. He also defended the company’s aggressive AI spending strategy, backing Microsoft’s reported $190 billion investment plan for 2026 as necessary to support future revenue growth and cloud infrastructure expansion.
The announcement also coincided with Pershing Square’s decision to exit its position in Alphabet, which Ackman originally purchased in 2022 following fears that generative AI could disrupt Google’s search business. Industry analysts noted that the portfolio shift reflects changing investor views around which major technology companies are best positioned to capitalize on the next phase of enterprise AI adoption.
Market experts believe Ackman’s investment underscores the continued appeal of large-cap AI infrastructure companies despite short-term volatility around AI monetization and spending. Microsoft remains one of the world’s biggest investors in AI infrastructure, cloud computing, and enterprise software, with Azure continuing to play a central role in supporting generative AI workloads for businesses worldwide.
