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Microsoft (MSFT) earnings Q1 2020


Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella smiles during the question and answer portion of the Microsoft Annual Shareholders Meeting in Bellevue, Wash., on Nov. 28, 2018.Stephen Brashear | Getty ImagesMicrosoft will announce the results of its fiscal first quarter after market close on Wednesday.Here are the numbers to watch:Earnings: Excluding certain items, $1.25 per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Revenue: $32.23 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.Advisory firm Evercore, which has the equivalent of a buy rating on Microsoft stock, said in a note distributed to clients on October 18 that it’s expecting Microsoft’s Azure public cloud to grow 64% on an annualized basis in the fiscal first quarter. At that level, Azure’s growth would be flat from last quarter. Azure’s growth rate has generally been on the decline as it gets larger, like competitor Amazon Web Services, which is larger but growing more slowly.In the previous quarter Microsoft’s Intelligent Cloud business segment, which includes Azure, was larger than any other segment for the first time in more than three years. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect the More Personal Computing segment, which includes Windows, to return to the top slot in the fiscal first quarter, with $10.90 billion in revenue.Gartner and IDC earlier this month both pointed to the Windows 10 upgrade cycle when they reported increases in PC shipments in the quarter. Support for Windows 7 ends in January 2020.In the fiscal first quarter, Microsoft said LinkedIn would move to Azure, and announced the acquisitions of cloud migration company Movere, data security company BlueTalon and retail advertising company PromoteIQ.Earlier this month Jefferies analysts led by Brent Thill upgraded Microsoft stock to buy from the equivalent of a sell rating. “We see a large diversified business with excellent visibility that has a clear line of sight into double-digit rev growth for the foreseeable future,” they wrote in a note to clients. The analysts pointed to Azure, the Office business and LInkedIn as growth opportunities.With respect to guidance, analysts are looking for Microsoft to forecast $36.02 billion in revenue for the fiscal second quarter.Microsoft shares are up about 34% since the beginning of the year.Executives will discuss the results with analysts at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time.This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.WATCH: Double upgrade for Microsoft

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