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Microsoft reported higher revenue and profit than expected for its first quarter, just days after offering voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 employees.
The key numbers:
- Adjusted earnings per share: $4.89, compared with $4.73 expected.
- Revenue: $92.28 billion, compared with $90.69 billion expected.
Revenue grew 19% from a year earlier, helped by a 48% rise in revenue from Azure, its cloud computing business.
Microsoft has been expanding its data centres to meet growing demand for AI. Despite that spending, it continued to generate cash after covering its operating costs and investments, unlike some of its biggest cloud rivals.
The company reported $45.2 billion in spending on infrastructure, equipment and long-term financing agreements, up about 30% from a year earlier. Net profit rose to $36.63 billion from $27.75 billion a year ago.
An interesting detail: Microsoft earned $24.1 billion in revenue from OpenAI during its full 2026 financial year. If revenue from OpenAI-related deals continued at the latest quarter’s pace, it would reach $40 billion a year.
Headcount update: Microsoft had 223,000 employees worldwide at the end of June, down from 228,000 at the end of 2025.
