Microsoft Corp. announced its first-quarter earnings on October 30, 2024, revealing better-than-expected results driven by its cloud computing and Office software divisions.
For the quarter ending September 30, Microsoft reported sales of $65.6 billion, a 16% increase year-over-year, surpassing analysts' expectations of $64.5 billion. Earnings per share reached $3.30, exceeding the anticipated $3.11.
The Azure cloud division experienced a 34% revenue growth, slightly down from 35% in the previous quarter but ahead of forecasts. Microsoft's overall cloud revenue rose 22% to $38.9 billion.
Capital expenditures totaled $20 billion, up from $19 billion in the prior quarter, reflecting investments in data centers and AI projects. Microsoft aims to triple its data center capacity by July 2025 and plans to acquire 1.8 million GPUs by year-end.
CEO Satya Nadella emphasized the company's commitment to expanding its AI capabilities, stating, 'We are expanding our opportunity and winning new customers as we help them apply our AI platforms and tools to drive new growth.'
Despite the positive results, Microsoft shares rose only about 1% in after-hours trading, reflecting ongoing investor concerns regarding the pace of returns on AI investments.