Microsoft Beats on Revenue, Driven by Cloud Strength and Hardware Sales

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) beat the street with its fiscal first-quarter earnings, announcing revenue of $23.20 billion after the bell on Thursday. Analysts had estimated revenue to be $22.02 billion.

Earnings per share came in at 54 cents, also higher than the estimated 49 cents per share.

The report was positive in spite of significant costs for the Redmond, Wash-based company, including $1.14 billion in integration and restructuring expenses. Microsoft had announced a restructuring plan in July and said it is continuing to fully integrate the Nokia Devices and Services business.

“We are innovating faster, engaging more deeply across the industry, and putting our customers at the center of everything we do, all of which positions Microsoft for future growth,”  said Satya Nadella, chief executive officer of Microsoft. “Our teams are delivering on our core focus of reinventing productivity and creating platforms that empower every individual and organization.”

Microsoft’s devices and consumer business saw revenue growth of 47% for a total of $10.96 billion. The Surface Pro 3 helped bring in revenue of $908 million.

Another bright spot? The popular Xbox console. Console sales in the first quarter came to 2.4 million, growing 102%.

The commercial side of the business grew less quickly – 10% -- but is still a large part of the overall Microsoft business, with revenue of $12.28 billion. In particular, commercial cloud revenue grew 128%. This category includes Office 365, Azure and Dynamics CRM.

“Customers are embracing our latest technologies from Surface Pro 3 and Office 365 to Azure and SQL Server,” said Kevin Turner, chief operating officer of Microsoft. “Through great execution by our sales teams and our partners, we have been able to deliver our truly differentiated value to the marketplace.”