Big market downturns can be some of the best times to buy stocks -- but there are caveats. First, market downturns are often accompanied by economic weakness. That means some companies don't survive, or they come out weaker than before. However, strong companies can take advantage in downturns, emerging with even better growth prospects and market share on the other side.

The past year's rate-hiking cycle has been one of those market downturns, when even cloud and software leader Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) has seen its stock decline 32% from all-time highs, despite its extraordinary combination of high-quality characteristics. That opens up a nice opportunity for investors to buy or add shares on this dip.

The reason investors can confidently buy Microsoft's stock, despite difficult economic headlines, is that it has some superior defensive qualities. First, its balance sheet is robust, with $107 billion in cash, against just $48 billion in debt. That cash position is the result of Microsoft's various wide-moat, cash-generative businesses.

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Source Fool.com