Microsoft Results Turn Heads - BusinessWeek- BuildingWebsiteNews

For the last several years, Microsoft ( MSFT ) has made good on a promise to beat the "law of large numbers," posting consistent double-digit revenue gains even as annual sales topped $50 billion. The software giant posted its fastest first-quarter revenue growth since 1999 and saw its stock soar in after-hours trading to its highest levels in five years. PC purchases that exceeded expectations and record-breaking sales of the Halo 3 video game fueled results that beat analyst revenue expectations by roughly $1 billion. Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell said during a conference call with analysts, investors, and journalists that only 1 point of the 4% jump in revenue guidance will come from aQuantive , the online advertising firm Microsoft bought for $5. But Halo 3 sales, coupled with a price cut on the Xbox 360 console, also spurred sales of the console, so much so that it outsold the wildly popular Nintendo ( NTDOY ) Wii console during the month, according to market researcher NPD Group . read more

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