Microsoft Sees Hike in Profit

Microsoft Sees Hike in Profit - Upbeat Outlook

Microsoft lifted its outlook for the fiscal year ending in June. It now expects earnings per share to range between $1.85 and $1.88 per share, up from its previous estimate of $1.78 to $1.81. Wall Street, on average, had projected $1.81.

It boosted its revenue outlook to between $59.9 billion and $60.5 billion, up from $58.8 billion to $59.7 billion before.

"Microsoft often sets the bar low for itself," said Kim Caughey, senior analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group. "These numbers tell me that Microsoft is seeing strength in the pipeline."

Demand from corporate customers showed no signs of slowing, as reflected in a $2 billion increase in unearned revenue versus a year earlier. That excludes a one-time bump last year from the issuance of coupons to cover software delays.

Unearned revenue usually covers multiyear agreements signed by large organizations to license Microsoft products. That revenue is recognized over the life of the contract.

Corporate customers pushed to sign new agreements ahead of the company's February launch of new software that runs on computers servers including Windows Server 2008.

While Microsoft and other tech companies are sensitive to the economy, Miedler said Microsoft and software in general can be a bit more defensive, in part because the products they sell are designed to improve productivity and help cut costs.

Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft was not alone in providing some upbeat news in the technology industry. Network equipment maker Juniper Networks Incand chip maker Broadcom also delivered a strong December quarter.

Microsoft posted strong Vista sales, helped by double-digit percentage growth in computer sales in the quarter. Windows sales were helped in part, according to Liddell, by improvements in fighting software piracy.

The Office business unit posted a 20 percent revenue gain excluding last year's software delay coupons on the back of surging demand for SharePoint collaboration software.

Microsoft's entertainment and devices division, home to the Xbox 360 business, delivered a 3 percent rise in revenue in the December quarter.

However, it swung to an operating profit of $357 million from a loss of $302 million in the year-ago period, boosted by lower Xbox 360 manufacturing costs and strong sales of profit-rich game titles like shooting game "Halo 3."

For the current quarter, Microsoft said earnings per share would range between 43 cents and 45 cents per share on revenue ranging from $14.3 billion to $14.6 billion, generally in line with Wall Street targets.

Last November, shares of Microsoft surged to their highest level since 2001, $37.50, after the September-quarter results. As of Wednesday's close, at $31.93, the stock had fallen more than 10 percent since then, partly due to economic concerns and broader market declines.

But on Thursday, Microsoft shares rose to $34.73 in after-hours trade after closing at $33.25 on Nasdaq.

(Additional reporting by Lisa Baertlein and Gina Keating in Los Angeles; Editing by Braden Reddall, Gary Hill)

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