Microsoft Q3 earnings beat expectations

Tech behemoth Microsoft posted third-quarter earnings that beat expectations overnight and also sounded an optimistic tone when discussing its outlook for the current quarter.

Microsoft posted earnings of $2.22 per share on Tuesday, ahead of the $2.19 expected on the Street, while revenues came to $49.36bn, up 18% year-on-year and better than the $49.05bn predicted by analysts.

Sales and marketing expenditures totalled $5.6bn, 10% higher than the same time a year earlier and the fastest growth in over three years.

Looking forward, Microsoft called for fourth-quarter revenues of $52.4bn-53.2bn, with guidance for each of the company's three business segments surpassing expectations.

As of 1040 BST, Microsoft shares were up 5.38% in pre-market trading at $284.77 each.