Microsoft Reports Higher Quarterly Profit
Posted on: Thursday, 17 July 2003, 06:00 CDT
SEATTLE (AP) - Microsoft Corp. reported a 26 percent increase in its fourth-quarter profit and raised its outlook for the coming year Thursday, but doused shareholders' hopes that it would issue a dividend anytime soon.
For the April-June quarter, the company earned $1.92 billion, or 18 cents a share, compared to $1.53 billion, or 14 cents a share, for the same period a year ago.
Microsoft reported revenues of $8.07 billion, up 11 percent from $7.25 billion for the same period a year ago.
Excluding a one-time charge from the company's $750 million legal settlement with AOL Time Warner Inc., Microsoft reported a profit of 23 cents a share, bettering a comparable gain of 21 cents per share last year.
On that basis, Microsoft's profit fell a penny short of the consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call. Microsoft exceeded the analysts' revenue projection of $7.88 billion.
The earnings report came out after Thursday's trading session in which shares of Microsoft closed down 83 cents, or 3 percent, to $26.69 a share on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. In extended trading, shares rose 50 cents.
Despite some investors' hopes for a dividend, Microsoft does not plan to announce a payout anytime soon, said Microsoft's chief financial officer, John Connors. He said the company needs to resolve legal issues, including an inquiry by the European Union and a lawsuit with Sun Microsystems.
The company slightly raised its outlook for the coming year, due to favorable foreign currency exchange rates as well as some strengthening of the stock market, which should bolster the value of its investments, Connors said.
Microsoft, which announced it would start expensing its stock-based compensation for employees, said it expects the move to cost 24 cents a share for its 2004 fiscal year, similar to analysts' projections.
For its entire fiscal year, Microsoft reported a profit of $10 billion, or 92 cents a share, compared to $7.8 billion, or 70 cents a share for the previous year. The company posted revenues of $32.2 billion, up from $28.4 billion in 2002.
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