OLD Media News

Cloud services push Microsoft’s Q3 profits higher

Cloud computing and the Teams suit of services helped drive earnings higher for Microsoft during the third quarter.

The Wall Street Journal’s Aaron Tilley reported:

Microsoft Corp. MSFT 1.51% expects the pandemic-era surge in demand for cloud-computing services, videogaming and computers that delivered a solid quarter to persist at least through the rest of the year.

The software company on Tuesday said sales rose 12% to $37.2 billion, generating a net profit of $13.9 billion in the first quarter of its fiscal year. The results surpassed Wall Street expectations on revenue and profit for the quarter ending in September.

Stephen Nellis and Akanksha Rana from Reuters wrote:

COVID-19 has speeded up a move toward cloud-based computing, helping companies such as Microsoft, Amazon.com Inc’s AMZN.O cloud unit and Alphabet Inc’s GOOGL.O Google Cloud. For Microsoft, it has also boosted demand for its Windows operating systems for laptops and its Xbox gaming services as families work, learn and play from home, leading to profit that was about 30% above expectations.

CNBC’s Jordan Novet and Jennifer Elias noted:

Microsoft is forecasting a continued slowdown in its search ad revenue, which could spell bad news for Google parent-company Alphabet, which reports its earnings on Thursday. 

Microsoft’s latest results beat across the board, but the company saw a 10% year-over-year drop in search advertising revenue, and reported continued decrease for its guidance for the next quarter, according to its first fiscal quarter earnings it released Tuesday.

Irina Slav

Recent Posts

WSJ’s Eisen to write book about the mortgage market

Wall Street Journal reporter Ben Eisen has signed a contract with Norton to write a book about…

25 mins ago

Reuters hires Krishnakutty as a news producer

Reuters has hired Pia Krishnakutty as a news producer. She has been at The Print as a…

30 mins ago

Indianapolis Biz Journal seeks a news editor

The Indianapolis Business Journal is looking for our next news editor, a role that focuses…

15 hours ago

Axios hires Berkowitz as ME for media and markets coverage

Axios has chosen Ben Berkowitz to be its next managing editor of business and markets.…

20 hours ago

Business Insider hires Ortega as director of newsroom operations

Business Insider editor in chief Jamie Heller sent out the following on Monday: I'm thrilled…

20 hours ago

Rest of World promotes Chandran to deputy editor

Rest of World editor in chief Anup Kaphle sent out the following on Monday: We are excited…

21 hours ago