Microsoft, Maybe it Needs De-verticalizing. Microsoft's quarterly earnings report is out today. It posted a 24% increase in its fiscal first-quarter profit. The market yawned: its up 2.57% today. Bernstein sold its position in Microsoft about 10 days ago. Merrill Lynch rates it a "hold". But Morningstar has a "buy" rating on it. Not a lot of consensus here.

The WSJ says that its MSN unit is falling more and more behind Google and Yahoo. Its Xbox 360 comes out next month, but its made no money for the company. Its Server and Tools division is doing well, and it makes big bucks from the Windows software. And there's a new guy who is heading up technology, Ray Ozzie, that is supposed to be a hopeful sign.

It pays a big dividend and the company is accelerating its stock buy-back program. I'm holding.