Investors cheer Microsoft reiterating full-year guidance

Microsoft pleased investors with its forecasts for continued strong growth over the year ahead, although its latest quarterly results fell short of expectations.

"In a dynamic environment we saw strong demand, took share, and increased customer commitment to our cloud platform. Commercial bookings grew 25% and Microsoft Cloud revenue was $25 billion, up 28% year over year," said Amy Hood, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Microsoft.

"As we begin a new fiscal year, we remain committed to balancing operational discipline with continued investments in key strategic areas to drive future growth."

The company also explained that since it lowered its guidance at the start of June macroeconomic conditions and "other unforeseen" items had had a greater impact than envisaged.

Yet the software and cloud computing giant posted fiscal fourth quarter net income growth of 7% at constant currencies to reach $16.7bn.

Earnings per share were up by 8% at constant FX but only 3% higher at current exchange rates due to US dollar strength.

Sales meanwhile jumped by 12% at current FX rates and by 16% in constant currency terms.

Shares of Microsoft finished 3.99% higher in after-hours trading to reach $261.95.