Nasdaq MSFT MicroSoft

U.S. stock indexes ended lower on Thursday, erasing earlier gains as Treasury yields rose after an auction of 30-year bonds went poorly and overshadowed strong earnings from corporate giants like Disney and PepsiCo.

Conversational artificial intelligence (AI) stocks are red-hot now, and this could be the right time to consider some of the well-known competitors in this field. Yet, there are also a couple of lesser-known businesses in this niche market that are worth taking a look at. While conversational AI software has been around for a while, the emergence of OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot brought this type of platform to the public's attention. This software can power search engines, customer service, coding, and more. OpenAI isn't a publicly-traded company, but you can consider other businesses that offer investors exposure to conversational AI. So, check out these stocks and conduct your due diligence for potentially powerful returns on this fast-growing tech-market segment. Microsoft ( NASDAQ:MSFT) Google parent company Alphabet ( NASDAQ:GOOG ) ( NASDAQ:GOOGL ) might seem like an obvious choice for machine learning exposure in the stock market. After all, Alphabet's been in the AI field for a while. However, I'm actually going to select Alphabet's main rival, Microsoft, for this list. Even though you can't invest directly in OpenAI, you can consider buying MSFT stock as Microsoft is investing $10 billion in OpenAI and its ChatGPT conversational AI software. Microsoft is making a smart move by integrating the powerful ChatGPT platform into its Bing internet search engine. This will pose a direct threat to Google's search engine dominance. Plus, Alphabet's answer to ChatGPT, known as Bard, is already gaining a negative reputation. As Reuters reported, Bard allegedly "shared inaccurate information in a promotional video." That's not a good start for Alphabet as it attempts to rival Microsoft in the conversational AI arms race, so expect GOOG/GOOGL stock to remain weak and MSFT stock to strengthen over time. What is the Price Target for MSFT Stock? MSFT has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 25 Buys, three Holds, and one Sell rating assigned in the past three months. The average Microsoft stock price target of $291.07 implies 10.36% upside potential. C3.ai ( NYSE:AI) Maybe Microsoft stock isn't enough of a pure play in the machine learning field. For more direct exposure to conversational AI and to AI in general, take a look at C3.ai stock. This is a company that beats EPS estimates time and time again and continues to grow its revenue each year. C3.ai has clients like the U.S. Air Force, and it's a nice bonus to know that you're investing in a company with mega-scale government customers. In addition, C3.ai continues to push the boundaries of generative AI (a close cousin to conversational AI) with recent launches of the C3 Generative AI Product Suite and C3 Generative AI for Enterprise Search. What is the Price Target for AI Stock? AI has a Hold consensus rating based on two Buys, two Holds, and three Sell ratings assigned in the past three months. Due to its recent rally, the average C3.ai stock price target of $16.50 implies 26.55% downside potential. SoundHound AI ( NASDAQ:SOUN) Now, I will present you to a couple of machine learning specialists you might never have heard of: SoundHound AI and BigBear.ai Holdings ( NYSE:BBAI ). It's fine to examine both of these companies, but I'm only really bullish on SoundHound AI. Like C3.ai, BigBear.ai conducts business with the U.S. Air Force. However, the company seems to be more involved with cybersecurity-related machine learning than with conversational AI. Furthermore, it's bothersome that it received a delisting threat from the New York Stock Exchange and that it only has a Hold rating from one Wall Street analyst. As we'll discuss in a moment, SoundHound AI is positively viewed by the analyst community. Moreover, the company launched a conversational AI platform called Dynamic Interaction, which not only recognizes and understands speech but also responds and acts in real time. On the financial front, it is deploying retrenchment and restructuring strategies and, consequently, expects to deliver over 50% revenue growth and turn a profit at some point this year. What is the Price Target for SOUN Stock? SOUN has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on three unanimous Buy ratings assigned in the past three months. Nonetheless, the average SoundHound AI stock price target of $3.70 implies 7.6% downside potential. Conclusion: Conversational AI Stocks are Worth a Try As we've discovered, conversational AI stocks aren't all the same. Some offer pure plays in this niche industry, while others are less direct but still worth considering. Perhaps it's worth taking a look at all of them and picking your favorites for a buy-and-hold stake. Disclosure

U.S. stock indexes ended lower on Thursday, erasing earlier gains as Treasury yields rose after an auction of 30-year bonds went poorly and overshadowed strong earnings from corporate giants like Disney and PepsiCo.

Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) stock has dropped over 10% this week on fears that the company is losing the AI war against rival Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). The video below shares two major impacts for Google and sheds light on why the stock is being punished.

U.S. stock indexes turned lower on Thursday afternoon as Treasury yields rose after an auction, overshadowing gains in Disney after strong earnings.

U.S. stock indexes turned lower by early afternoon on Thursday as Alphabet shares extended declines to another session, overshadowing gains in Disney after strong earnings.

Last year was exceptionally difficult for many investors. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite fell into bear market territory as high inflation and rising interest rates rattled the U.S. economy. In fact, both indexes fell more sharply in 2022 than in any year since the Grea

U.S. main stock indexes rose on Thursday with Disney and Salesforce boosting the blue-chip Dow index, while data showing a rise in weekly jobless claims helped ease concerns about the Federal Reserve's rate-hike path.

Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) reported impressive financial performance in the fourth quarter (ending Dec. 31), with both revenues and earnings surpassing analysts' estimates. However, a slowdown in PC and gaming segments seems to be adversely affecting investor sentiment.

U.S. main stock indexes were set for a higher open on Thursday as a slew of strong quarterly earnings and data showing a rise in weekly jobless claims outweighed concerns about the Federal Reserve's rate-hike path.

Elon Musk's Twitter was hit with a yellow card from the European Commission on Thursday as its reported efforts to tackle disinformation fell short of those by Alphabet's Google, Meta Platforms, Microsoft and TikTok.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) invested over $10 billion in artificial intelligence module ChatGPT. Not only will the hot buzz around AI be a driver for Microsoft, but it could also be a tailwind for cloud revenues.

U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday as a slew of strong quarterly earnings lifted sentiment after worries that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer had fueled losses on Wall Street a day earlier.

Designed to provide broad exposure to the Large Cap Blend segment of the US equity market, the Vanguard Large-Cap ETF (VV) is a passively managed exchange traded fund launched on 01/27/2004.

When investing in the stock market, choosing companies with solid market share in consistently growing industries is always best. The tech market is home to a wealth of growth stocks because it's made up of companies in a near-constant state of development and innovation. And inv

For Immediate ReleaseChicago, IL – February 9, 2023 – Zacks Director of Research Sheraz Mian says, "For 2023 Q1, S&P 500 earnings are currently expected to be down -7.5% on +2.1% higher revenues. This is down from -4% on January 6th and -2.9% in mid-December 2022."

Elon Musk's Twitter lagged behind Alphabet's Google, Meta Platforms, Microsoft and TikTok in the fight against disinformation in the last six months, the European Commission said on Thursday and urged Twitter to step up its efforts.

Microsoft ( NASDAQ:MSFT ) kicked off the artificial intelligence (AI) wars with its upped stake in OpenAI, the now well-known firm behind the language model and AI phenomenon ChatGPT. With Alphabet's ( NASDAQ:GOOG ) ( NASDAQ:GOOGL ) Google scrambling to get its chatbot out the door, many investors are wondering which of the two tech titans will end up winning the AI battle. I am bullish on both MSFT and GOOGL, as I believe both firms can win from the rise of AI. Undoubtedly, Alphabet was widely seen as one of the leaders in the AI race. The search giant had the keys to one of the biggest data sets out there. Now, the tides are shifting. ChatGPT caught the attention of over 100 million, and Microsoft is announcing plans to incorporate the technology alongside many of its much-loved offerings. Therefore, let's see how the two big-tech firms stack up as the AI battle heats up. ChatGPT's "iPhone" Moment Kicks Off AI Battle After a huge week of AI news for Google and Microsoft, the AI wars have kicked off just ahead of Superbowl weekend. The current state of ChatGPT (version 3.5) is anything but perfect, but there's no denying its usefulness in a wide range of subjects. From writing high-school essays to creating meal and workout plans for those looking to go on a diet, it certainly seems like generative AI stands to threaten a growing list of professions. Indeed, ChatGPT does a great job of explaining so many complex topics in plain English and in record time. Undoubtedly, it seems like chatbots are the next step from traditional search engines. In many ways, the user-friendly ChatGPT is going through its "iPhone" moment. Whether the product ends up as lucrative as the iPhone, though, is another question. Looking ahead, Microsoft is poised to go all-in on AI, which could grow to become the firm's new growth engine as Azure begins to stall. The software behemoth has the cash to spend and the user base to showcase the latest and greatest innovations coming out of the OpenAI pipeline. Most importantly, Microsoft has CEO Satya Nadella — a man that played a key role in making the company one of the most innovative and growthy forces in the tech sector. What is the Price Target for MSFT Stock? Wall Street has a "Strong Buy" consensus rating on Microsoft stock, with 17 Buys, two Holds, and one Sell. The average MSFT stock price target of $285.90 implies 7.2% upside potential. AI Could Give Microsoft's Bing a New Edge It's hard not to be excited (or perhaps a tad overwhelmed) by Microsoft's plans to revamp Bing search and its Edge browser with powerful AI technology. Indeed, Bing and Edge have taken the backseat to Alphabet's Google and Chrome for many years. The trillion-dollar question is whether AI will cause users to switch over from Google's ecosystem. Given the popularity of ChatGPT, I do think many hardcore Google fans will give Bing a try for the very first time. If Bing with AI is a good product (I think it will be), Alphabet may have a problem on its hands as the moat protecting its search business begins to show a few cracks. After Google's embarrassing AI fumble on Wednesday, it appears that investors see Microsoft as the disruptor and Alphabet as the disrupted. In case you missed it, Google's chatbot Bard gave the wrong answer to a question in a demo. The news contributed to Alphabet stock tanking 7.7% on the day. Indeed, generative AI is a work in progress. That said, I think it's pretty cringy (maybe a bit funny if you're not an Alphabet shareholder) to have a behemoth like Google unknowingly "showing off" one of its chatbot's faults. I think the fumble shows how much the company is rushing to respond to Microsoft and ChatGPT. AI is not something that should be rushed. In that regard, I think Microsoft is really smart for quietly investing in OpenAI, rather than risking reputational damage by pulling the curtain on Microsoft-branded AI this early in the game. Perhaps Microsoft learned a valuable lesson about the dangers of releasing an imperfect product following its disastrous launch of AI chatbot Tay back in 2016. What is the Price Target for GOOGL Stock? Analysts continue to love Alphabet, with a "Strong Buy" rating based on 32 unanimous Buy ratings. The average GOOGL stock price target of $129.34 implies 30.2% upside. Takeaway: Microsoft's Leading the AI Battle, but the War Isn’t Over At this juncture, it seems like Microsoft has the clear upper hand in the AI war with Google. Still, I view the nearly 8% plunge in Alphabet stock as exaggerated. Sure, there's a lot at stake here (perhaps the future of search) as the two AI titans duke it out. Still, I view Alphabet's demo hiccup not as a sign that Bard is vastly inferior to ChatGPT but as a simple mistake on the part of those who put together the demo! If anything, Alphabet's flop may be more of an opportunity than a cause for concern. At writing, GOOGL stock trades at 20.8 times trailing earnings, well below MSFT stock, which goes for 29.7 times trailing earnings. Microsoft may be better at communicating its game plan with AI. However, Alphabet has the data and the more popular search engine, at least for now. In that regard, I view Alphabet as down but definitely not out in the early innings of its AI battle with Microsoft. Bank of America ( NYSE:BAC ) analyst Justin Post agrees. Post notes that Google has "years of investment" on its side and views the firm as "well-prepared" for the AI battle. Bank of America has a $119 price target, implying 19% gains from current levels. Disclosure

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