Microsoft Keeps Them Guessing

Updated from 9:24 a.m. EDT

It's only fitting that a wildly uneven earnings season for technology companies should near its close with Microsoft(MSFT Quote) beating first-quarter profit estimates while also forecasting soft sales.

The mixed performance left Wall Street nonplussed. The stock traded lower in a single-percentage-point range overnight, then firmed to $25.30 in early Friday trading, up 45 cents, or 1.8%. Investors are probably glad for the muted reaction given the panic that followed earlier disappointments at Amazon(AMZN Quote) and eBay(EBAY Quote).

Analysts were also in a forgiving mood, with Banc of America, UBS and Piper all reiterating the equivalent of buys on the stock and CSFB raising it to outperform. ...