Microsoft’s recent fourth quarter earnings release was far superior to the company’s third quarter results, which were announced on Thursday, April 27th and saw the company’s stock decline by 2% in the ensuing trading. This time around, Microsoft’s stock closed trading slightly higher. More importantly, the company’s fundamental business continues to grow at a torrid pace. Microsoft’s sustained growth has resulted in a steady stream of rising dividends for the company’s shareholders. In fact, Microsoft is a member of the Dividend Achievers, a group of dependable dividend stocks with 10+ years of consecutive dividend increases. You can see the full list of all 265 Dividend Achievers here. Microsoft’s strong earnings release indicates that the future remains bright for this high-quality dividend stock. This article will analyze Microsoft’s earnings release and business model in detail.

Business Overview, Current Events & Growth Prospects

Microsoft is a technology giant and the largest independent developer of software in the world. The company was famously founded by Bill Gates in 1975 and has grown steadily over the years to its current eye-popping size. At ~$572 billion, Microsoft is currently the third largest corporation in the United States based on market capitalization, behind Apple (AAPL) and Alphabet (GOOG) (GOOGL). Microsoft currently reports in three operating segments:

There was a lot to like about Microsoft’s fourth quarter earnings release. Specifically, the following metrics stand out:

It is very impressive for a company of Microsoft’s size to deliver such strong fundamental profit growth. Remember, this is not a small technology startup we’re talking about – Microsoft has a market capitalization of $500+ billion and is the third-largest corporation in the United States.