MSFT: Good But Not Amazing

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MSFT: Good But Not Amazing

The Microsoft [MSFT] share price fell as much as 7% following its earnings report, then pared losses to close Tuesday down 4%. The software giant reported that revenue increased 15% from a year earlier, but said its cloud business had slowed and its artificial intelligence (AI) wing would need further investment; capital spending rose 77.6% in the recent quarter, mostly accounted for by cloud and AI-related expenditure. Microsoft also announced on Tuesday that it will make a one-time performance-based cash award to employees at the senior director level and below; CNBC reported that the firm has been struggling to retain staff.

Chipmaker Roundup

Reporting Wednesday, Samsung Electronics [SSNLF] said that net income grew at its fastest rate since 2010, beating the Wall Street consensus. Sales of high-bandwidth AI chips rose more than 50% against the previous quarter and the company plans to double output of such chips next year. Elsewhere, the Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] share price rose 8% after it reported Q2 earnings that similarly exceeded projections, while Intel [INTC] is planning to axe thousands of jobs, Bloomberg reported.

GSK Jab Sales Drop

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is planning to spend $10m on curbing bird flu infections among livestock workers, some $5m of which will go to providing seasonal flu vaccines. UK drugmaker GSK [GSK] on Wednesday cut its forecast for vaccine sales this year, after quarterly revenue from its blockbuster shingles and respiratory syncytial virus jabs missed expectations. Patients and doctors in the US have said that Novo Nordisk’s [NVO] decision to stop selling its insulin medication Levemir has left some patients struggling to change treatments.

Meta Settles with Texas

Facebook parent Meta [META] has agreed to a record $1.4bn settlement with the US state of Texas, after the state filed a suit against the tech firm in 2022, alleging that it had violated state law by collecting facial recognition information on millions of users. “Any abuse of Texans’ sensitive data will be met with the full force of the law,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Elsewhere in social media, the Pinterest [PINS] share price sank by 15% after the company reported Q2 earnings on Tuesday.

Official: Amazon is a Distributor

On Tuesday, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission said that Amazon [AMZN] may be held responsible for defective goods sold by third-party merchants. The landmark order rejects the company’s stance that it is solely an intermediary: the firm “fits squarely” in the definition of a distributor of goods, “and therefore bears legal responsibility for their recall”. The e-commerce giant must now develop a plan to notify purchasers about product hazards, as well as offer shoppers refunds or replacements.