First-quarter profit climbs on strong business demand. Raises outlook for fiscal 2005.
October 21, 2004: 4:46 PM EDT
SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. on Thursday said its first quarter profit climbed as personal computer sales and business demand fueled higher sales.
The Redmond, Washington-based company reported a net profit of $2.9 billion, or 27 cents per share, for its first fiscal quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with a profit of $2.6 billion, or 24 cents per share, a year earlier.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call had expected earnings of 25 cents a share after a charge of five cents a share for stock-based employee compensation.
The company also raised its revenue and earnings guidance for the full year. It said 2005 sales should be between $38.9 billion and $39.2 billion, up from an earlier range of $38.4 billion to $38.8 billion.
Earnings per share should be between $1.07 and $1.09, up from the previously predicted range of $1.05 and $1.08.
The company also said it expects personal computer shipments to grow 8 percent to 10 percent for its fiscal year to next June, chief financial officer John Connors said.
Microsoft, whose Windows operating system runs on more than 90 percent of the world's PCs, said that shipments growth in its first fiscal quarter ended September were slightly stronger than expected at 10 percent.
"We still think the worldwide growth rate for full year PC shipments is right between 8 and 10 percent, Connors said.
For the rest of 2004, research firm IDC is expecting PC shipments to grow by 14.2 percent, indicating that Microsoft expects a slight slowdown in growth in the first half of next year. Methodologies in tracking shipments, however, differs between companies and research firms.
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