Microsoft shares hit all-time high as earnings beat expectations

Microsoft shares rose to an all-time high in after-hours trading on 20 October, after the software giant posted better-than-expected first quarter results. The rise in profits was helped by an 8% jump in cloud revenue to $6.4bn, with the firm reporting that the use of its Azure cloud computing platform had more than doubled since last year. The news sent Microsoft shares 6% higher to $60.73 in New York, overtaking its previous peak of $59.97 in 1999 during the dot-com boom.