Proactive Investors - When Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) reports earnings after the market closes on April 25, it could offer something of a Rorschach test for investors.
The Street expects revenue of $51.1 billion, 4% higher year-over-year, and earnings of $2.26 per share.
On the plus side, the software titan expects its intelligence cloud segment, which includes Microsoft Azure, to grow 17% to 19% and its productivity and business processes segment to grow 11% to 13%.
However, personal computing is projected to fall by 15% to 18%. The PC market as a whole is in a bad place, with PC shipments dropping 30% in the first quarter according to a report from Barron’s.
Investors will be watching closely for Microsoft Azure’s growth rate. It’s dropped in recent quarters, and some analysts are concerned that the current projections for the next year are too optimistic.
That said, Stifel analyst Brad Reback wrote last week that the growth rate could stabilize in the mid-20% range by the middle of 2023. In a note to clients, the firm upped its price target to $310 from $290.
In the meantime, Microsoft shares were nearly unchanged Wednesday afternoon at $288.47.