Microsoft revenue tops estimates days after massive buyout offer

Microsoft reported quarterly revenue of $92.3 billion and a profit of more than $36.6 billion on Wednesday. These figures exceeded analyst expectations of approximately $90.6 billion in revenue and $35.1 billion in profit, according to data from FactSet. The stock gained billions of dollars in market value in the afternoon following the disclosure.

The earnings report arrived two days after the company extended voluntary buyout offers to roughly 60,000 employees. That number represents about one quarter of Microsoft's total workforce. The company cited heavy spending on artificial intelligence investments as the driver for the restructuring.

This marks the second time this year that Microsoft has offered employees the chance to leave with a package. In April, the firm allowed seven percent of its US staff to retire early. Regulatory filings show that Microsoft's global headcount fell to 223,000 at the end of June, down from 228,000 at the end of 2025.

Azure, the company's cloud computing division, accounted for a major portion of the financial results. The segment grew by 48 percent during the September quarter. Chief Executive Satya Nadella stated in a filing that the company is delivering greater capability, choice, control, and cost-efficiency for customers across its entire stack.

The financial performance coincides with a new hardware release. Earlier this month, Microsoft launched the Surface Ultra laptop, which runs on Nvidia's artificial intelligence chips. The device carries a price tag of over $2,500. Apple announced a comparable touchscreen MacBook on Wednesday.

Tech firms are moving to build devices that process AI tasks locally on the hardware rather than relying exclusively on remote cloud datacenters. Executives argue that on-device processing reduces latency and operating costs for users.