Tech Roundup: Microsoft, Intel Lead Latest Parade Of Earnings Results

Investors turned their attention to Wall Street this week in a series of conference calls with some of the biggest names in tech ahead of the year's first round of general earnings reports.

Microsoft ( NASDAQ:MSFT ) led the way with its second quarter financial results. The initial reaction was positive, but then investors began to doubt the outlook for Microsoft (MSFT), which showed mixed business prospects in the coming months.

Meanwhile, CEO Satya Nadella left no doubt as to where at least some of Microsoft's (MSFT) interests are heading, calling AI "the next wave of platforms" for enterprises. Nadella's comments came the day after Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) announced that it has invested "billions of dollars" in ChatGPT developer OpenAI.

The Microsoft (MSFT) report has caused some other cloud software companies such as Adobe (ADBE) and Salesforce (CRM) to be insecure.

For its part, Salesforce (CRM) has added three new independent directors as part of its efforts to fight off active investor Elliott Management, which is reportedly offering its own list of directors to the Salesforce (CRM) board.

Intel ( NASDAQ:INTC ) ended the week lower as its stock fell sharply after what can only be described as a disappointing earnings report and guidance. Industry analysts point to a "staggering" deterioration in the semiconductor giant's business.

Other chip stocks cut Intel's (INTC) losses, while companies like Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Nvidia (NVDA) surged after Intel's (INTC) results.

IBM (IBM) also announced its latest quarterly results, with CEO Arvind Krishna stressing that the technology services giant remains "confident" in its hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence strategies.

In the chip segment, Broadcom (AVGO) received support after announcing that Apple ( NASDAQ:AAPL ) has suspended plans to develop its own Wi-Fi chips and ceased production of similar Broadcom chips.

Texas Instruments (TXN) also suffered after the analog communications chip maker posted a disappointing trading outlook.

Chip equipment maker Teradyne (TER) lost ground due to the company's poor sales forecast.

The country's two largest telecommunications and wireless companies have also entered the revenue arena. AT&T (T) shares hit a six-month high after the company reported higher-than-expected earnings and free cash flow, in line with analysts' estimates.

Verizon (VZ) stock was largely flat after posting quarterly earnings in line with Wall Street analyst estimates and amid concerns about the company's 2023 outlook.

After remaining relatively calm since the start of the year, Elon Musk made headlines related to Twitter by denying reports that he planned to raise $3 billion to pay off his debt to Twitter (TWTR).

The 2023 Oscar nominations are known, and this year's nominations have seen another big drop in movie nominations from major streaming companies like Netflix (NFLX), Amazon (AMZN) and Apple (AAPL).

And it looks like we're all hearing more from former President Donald Trump, as Meta Platforms (META) said it had reinstated Trump's Facebook and Instagram accounts just two years after his suspension from the social media platform:

Read now. AT&T puts a tiger in a tank

Ask a former Microsoft developer something.