Microsoft has posted a quarterly profit that soundly beat Wall Street estimates before including an accounting change, saying performance was solid across all its businesses and that it was bullish about its key product, Windows 2000.
Microsoft, which makes the Windows operating system that runs most personal computers, said its net profit in its first quarter ended September 30th rose to $2.58 billion (€3.07 billion) from $2.19 billion, or 40 cents a share, a year earlier. Including a change in how it must account for some hedging activities, the profit was 40 cents a share.
The company which employs almost 2,000 people in Ireland, was expected to show a profit of 41 cents a share.
The higher-than expected profit was surprising since most analysts had expected the company to top estimates by a penny - at best.
Microsoft stock has been battered by concerns over a slowing PC market and lacklustre sales while it waits for key new products to gain momentum.
Investors sent shares of Microsoft up $2, or 4 per cent, to $53 3/4 in after-hours trading. The software giant's share price has fallen by more than 50 per cent from its year high of $119.93 3/4 last December. It gained 2.6 per cent yesterday just before the earnings report was released.
Last month the company said it would handle all its Internet transactions across Europe, the Middle East and Africa from Dublin, in a move which should safeguard Irish jobs and establish Ireland as international e-commerce hub. It has contracted AboveNet, a subsidiary of Metromedia Fibre Network to maintain a $75 million Internet data centre in Citywest business park.
