Microsoft Q4 beats on $90B revenue, Azure grows 43%

Microsoft reported $90 billion（約14兆円） in fiscal fourth quarter revenue on Wednesday, surpassing analyst estimates of $87.72 billion（約14兆円） and posting adjusted earnings of $4.74 per share. The beat was anchored in Azure cloud performance, which grew 43%—exceeding the near 40% growth analysts had modeled and accelerating from the prior quarter. Microsoft Cloud revenue reached $59.3 billion（約9.5兆円）, up 27% year over year, while the Intelligent Cloud segment housing Azure grew 32% to $39.3 billion（約6.3兆円）.

The forward outlook appeared even stronger. Commercial remaining performance obligation, representing contracted revenue not yet recognized, jumped 84% to $678 billion（約110兆円）, suggesting deep customer commitment to future AI infrastructure deployment. CEO Satya Nadella tied the results directly to AI adoption in his earnings statement: "This year, Azure revenue surpassed $100 billion（約16兆円） for the first time, and Microsoft 365 Copilot reached over 30 million paid seats, reflecting the confidence customers are placing in us to power their AI transformation."

The earnings came with a steep capex bill. Microsoft added $35.8 billion（約5.7兆円） in property and equipment during the quarter, more than double the $17.1 billion（約2.7兆円） in the year-ago period. Full-year additions reached $115.9 billion（約19兆円）, pushing net property and equipment to $313.1 billion（約50兆円） from $205 billion（約33兆円）. Operating cash flow of $55.4 billion（約8.9兆円） comfortably covered this outlay. The reported profit figure also benefited from a $3.2 billion（約5100億円） gain on Microsoft's Anthropic stake and lighter retirement-program costs, which added $0.27 to diluted earnings per share against April guidance. Consumer-facing businesses lagged: More Personal Computing revenue fell 4%, with Xbox content and services down 10%.

The results landed as Bitcoin trades near $63,553, down roughly 50% from its October 2025 record high of $126,080, and 3.5% lower on the week. The divergence between Microsoft's AI-driven beat and crypto's weakness suggests the asset class is no longer tracking the near-term AI earnings cycle upward. For traders, the forward question centers on Microsoft's fiscal 2027 spending guidance—whether continued capex escalation will be matched by proportional backlog growth or whether the AI infrastructure cycle may face profitability headwinds.

Microsoft's fiscal Q4 results underscore the capital-intensive nature of the current AI cycle. While the $90 billion（約14兆円） revenue beat and 43% Azure growth demonstrate strong customer demand for cloud infrastructure, the doubling of property and equipment spending to $35.8 billion（約5.7兆円） signals that sustaining this growth requires massive upfront investment. The 84% jump in commercial remaining performance obligation to $678 billion（約110兆円） suggests customers are committed to AI deployments, but the near-term burden falls on Microsoft's balance sheet and profitability metrics.

The broader market context frames these earnings as a test of whether AI momentum will persist across the technology sector and into digital assets. Bitcoin's 50% decline from its October 2025 peak, despite Microsoft's beat, suggests investor sentiment on cryptocurrency has decoupled from near-term earnings results. The article indicates that crypto traders are now keying off Microsoft's capital spending trajectory and backlog growth rather than headline revenue figures—a shift reflecting concern that AI infrastructure capex may eventually outpace realized revenue, reviving bubble-like dynamics.

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!