The net worth of billionaire Bill Gates rose by another $2 billion as shares of Microsoft rallied on April 26.
The founder of the tech behemoth owns 103 million shares or a 1.38% stake in Microsoft (MSFT), according to data from FactSet.
DON'T MISS: Bill Gates Reveals the Next Big Thing
Shares of Microsoft’s rose by $19.95 to $295.37 on April 26, setting a new record for the best one-day percentage gain in 2023. Microsoft's previous record was when shares increased by 8.2% on Nov. 10, 2022.
Amid layoffs at major tech companies, Microsoft reported less of a slowdown in growth in its cloud computing division, Azure, compared to the prediction of analysts.
Microsoft quashed some of the concerns from Wall Street and investors that software spending, including cloud segments in tech companies, were facing a massive slowdown on fears of a mild recession.
Growth from the Azure business is declining, but Microsoft's forecast suggested the slowdown was not as dire.
Microsoft reported stronger-than-expected third quarter earnings on April 25.
The tech company said revenue for Azure increased by 27% from last year over the three months ending in March and missed forecasts from the Street.
Revenue for the group rose by 7.2% to $52.9 billion during Microsoft's fiscal second quarter, beating of analysts' estimates of a $49.36 billion. Intelligent Cloud revenue totaled $22.08 billion, ahead of the Street's $21.26 billion forecast and up 22% from the same period last year.
Microsoft's adjusted earnings jumped by 10.4% from last year to $2.27 per share, just ahead of the Street consensus forecast of $2.23 per share. Net income rose 9% to $18.3 billion.
The company said for the final three months of its fiscal year, which ends in June, its Intelligent Cloud revenue are estimated to generate between $23.6 billion and $23.9 billion, implying an 8.2% sequential growth rate.
“The world's most advanced AI models are coming together with the world's most universal user interface - natural language - to create a new era of computing,” said CEO Satya Nadella. “Across the Microsoft Cloud, we are the platform of choice to help customers get the most value out of their digital spend and innovate for this next generation of AI.”
Microsoft's productivity and business division revenue, which includes Office 365, were largely flat to last year at $17 billion, the company said while Personal Computing revenue, which includes Windows, reached $13.26 billion.
“Focused execution by our sales teams and partners in this dynamic environment resulted in Microsoft Cloud revenue of $28.5 billion, up 22% (up 25% in constant currency) year-over-year,” said CFO Amy Hood.
The fourth richest person in the world, Gates has a total net worth of $122 billion as of April 26, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. His wealth increased by $12.3 billion year-to-date and gained by $713 million in one day.
Microsoft, one of the large investors in OpenAI, announced in February that it will incorporate ChatGPT features into its Bing search engine and will also integrate it into its business services.
Last November the chatbot ChatGPT was launched and is different from previous bots because it can respond to queries with human-like responses.
Gates, former CEO of Microsoft and Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, signed the Giving Pledge to commit to donating part of their massive wealth.
The tech billionaire and his ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, have also used their wealth to eradicate diseases such as polio and malaria, among many others.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is also at the forefront of the fight against climate change.
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