Microsoft Jumps and Meta Slides as Big Tech Earnings Split Wall Street

US equity futures rebounded on Thursday, recovering from the previous session's sell-off that followed the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady. The bounce was led by Microsoft, whose shares jumped more than 8% in premarket trading after the company reported stronger-than-expected growth in its Azure cloud business, offering fresh evidence that heavy investment in artificial intelligence is starting to generate commercial returns. Semiconductor stocks rallied in sympathy. Meta Platforms moved in the opposite direction, with shares falling around 9% after the Facebook and Instagram parent issued weaker revenue guidance and reported a steep drop in second-quarter free cash flow, unsettling investors already wary of ballooning AI capital spending. Analysts framed the divergence as a tale of two AI investment strategies, noting that strong earnings alone are no longer enough to satisfy demanding expectations. The results landed a day after major indexes fell sharply on the Fed decision and renewed Middle East tensions. Apple and Amazon are due to report their results the following day, keeping the earnings season in sharp focus.