not vested
Microsoft shares drop as Azure cloud-services sales slowby Dina Bass
(July 23): Microsoft Corp. reported disappointing quarterly sales growth in its Azure cloud-computing business, dashing optimism that growth would remain in overdrive as companies increasingly rely on internet-based services during the coronavirus outbreak.
Azure revenue rose 47% in the quarter ended June 30, missing analysts’ predictions for a 49% gain and notably lower than the 59% jump of the prior quarter.
Shares slipped about 2.7% in extended trading. The miss overshadowed an otherwise strong report -- revenue rose 13% to $38 billion, the software maker said Wednesday in a statement. Analysts polled by Bloomberg on average estimated $36.5 billion.
The results showed subscriptions and cloud programs like Office and Azure continuing to grow along with remote work -- but not enough for some investors, who have bid up tech companies’ stocks on expectations that the pandemic would have benefits for their businesses.
Investors pushed Microsoft’s stock 29% higher in the June quarter. Ives noted that some were hoping for Azure growth of as much as 55%. The shares, which had risen 1.4% to $211.75 Wednesday in New York trading, fell as low as $204.52 in extended trading.
For the fiscal fourth quarter, net income was $11.2 billion, or $1.46 a share, including a
5-cent charge Microsoft took for closing its retail stores, compared with estimates of $1.36 a share.
Commercial cloud revenue rose 30% to $14.3 billion. Margins for the business widened by 1% to 66%. Those numbers also represented a less rosy picture than the previous quarter, when commercial cloud revenue rose 39% and margins improved by 4%.
“I feel pretty optimistic about where we are,” Hood said. Given the future interest, the company will continue to invest “significantly” in cloud data centers. In the fourth quarter, the company had $5.8 billion in capital expenditures, after constraints on equipment purchases in the March quarter damped spending and caused cloud-capacity issues.
Economic weakness is hitting other parts of Microsoft’s business. On Monday, the company’s LinkedIn professional-networking unit said it would cut 960 jobs, or about 6% of its workforce, because few companies are hiring. Revenue at LinkedIn gained 10% in the June period, Microsoft said Wednesday.
One-time purchases of software have also been curtailed, which caused the company’s Productivity software unit to fall slightly short. Revenue was $11.8 billion, compared with an $11.9 billion average estimate of analysts polled by Bloomberg. Consumers bought more subscriptions for cloud-based versions of Office, but that revenue gets recorded over time, instead of the immediate sales bump from individual purchases of a copy of Office.
“A lot of that gets recognized in future quarters,” Hood said. “That’s probably remote work and learn demand showing itself in subscriptions, which is a good thing.”
Windows software for personal computers and Surface devices continued to sell well, with demand fueled by workers who need better gear at home. That was especially strong in April because devices were in short supply the previous quarter, Hood said.
Another part of Microsoft’s business benefiting from homebound customers is gaming. Revenue from Xbox games and services jumped 65% in the quarter. Hood reiterated that the company’s newest Xbox console is running on time for a holiday-season release.
Source: Bloomberg
https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/ ... sales-slow
It's all about "how much you made when you were right" & "how little you lost when you were wrong"