Microsoft Corp. posted a 22% increase in quarterly revenues of $45.3 billion, topping Wall Street’s expectations, backed by continued strength in its cloud business.
- Profits for the third quarter ended Sept.30 rose 48% to reach $20.5 billion, with earnings per share of $2.71, but that comprised an unusual tax benefit of $3.3 billion from a transfer of “certain intangible properties” from its Puerto Rico subsidiary to the U.S.
- Revenues for Microsoft Cloud jumped 36% to reach $20.7 billion, surpassing $20 billion in the first quarter ever in the company’s history.
- Revenue obtained by LinkedIn expanded 42% to $3.14 billion for the quarter, driven by the growth of 61% in LinkedIn’s Marketing Solutions business that companies use to generate sales leads and sales.
- Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella addressed the wider economic trends in the earnings release, describing digital technology as “ a deflationary force in an inflationary economy.”
Gaming revenue expanded 16% to $3.6 billion, backed by Xbox hardware growth. Surface revenue dropped 17% to $1.3 billion.
MSFT up +1.54%, Pre-market tradingSource: Microsoft
