(By Balachander) Software major Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) reported lower earnings and revenue for the first quarter, and its shares dropped 1.32 percent in extended trading on Thursday.
On an adjusted basis, the company posted earnings per share (EPS) of 65 cents on revenue of $17.36 billion. Wall Street analysts, on average, expected EPS of 56 cents on revenue of $16.42 billion for the first quarter.
The world's largest software company posted GAAP EPS of 53 cents on revenue of $16.00 billion, compared with EPS of 68 cents on revenue of $17.37 billion in the same period of last year.
Results for the first quarter reflect the deferral of $1.36 billion of revenue and $0.13 of EPS, due to the Windows Upgrade Offer, pre-sales of Windows 8 to OEMs prior to general availability, and the Office Offer, the company said.
Revenue at the company's Windows and Windows Live division plunged 33 percent, while revenue at the business division fell 2 percent. Revenue at MSFT's entertainment and devices division declined 1 percent.
The year 2012 is crucial for the Redmond, Washington-based company, whose Windows operating system runs almost 80 percent of PCs. Its upcoming Windows 8 is considered as one of the biggest overhaul of Windows operating system. Windows 8 will become generally available October 26, 2012.
In the preceding fourth quarter, MSFT earned 73 cents a share, on an adjusted basis, on revenue of $18.6 billion. It reported a quarterly loss, as it took a $6.2 billion non-cash goodwill impairment charge related to the acquisition of aQuantive Inc.
The stock, which has been trading between $23.79 and $32.95 over the past year, ended Thursday's regular trading at $29.54.