Microsoft Stock Jumps On Earnings Beat Driven By Cloud Segment [Video]

Microsoft (MSFT) shares rose around 5% in after-hours trading Thursday after the company reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings driven by its cloud business.

The company’s revenue for the third quarter of fiscal 2024 was $61.9 billion, above analyst expectations and a 17% increase from the year-ago period. That growth came from a 23% year-over-year increase in Microsoft’s cloud revenue to $35.1 billion.

Net income and diluted earnings per share (EPS) were also above analysts’ estimates and grew 20% from a year earlier.

Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI gave it a lead on artificial intelligence. Investors and analysts were keeping a close eye on updates about AI tools as well as plans for their monetization.

“Microsoft Copilot and Copilot stack are orchestrating a new era of AI transformation, driving better business outcomes across every role and industry,” said the company’s CEO Satya Nadella wrote in the earnings release.

Microsoft shares were up more than 5% at $420.00 during …