https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/Recent content in How Microsoft Makes its Money: Revenue Breakdown on VisuwireHugo -- gohugo.ioen-usFri, 24 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/stock-based-compensation-history/Fri, 24 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/stock-based-compensation-history/Microsoft Stock-Based Compensation: 2020–2025 Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) recorded $3.22 billion in stock-based compensation (SBC) in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). For calendar year 2025, total SBC was approximately $12.3 billion — representing 4.0% of $305.5 billion in revenue. Microsoft’s SBC has grown steadily in absolute terms as the company has competed for engineering talent in a tight labour market, but has remained remarkably stable as a percentage of revenue over the past five years.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/earnings-per-share-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/earnings-per-share-history/Microsoft EPS: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) reported diluted EPS of $5.16 in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). Calendar-year 2025 diluted EPS totaled approximately $15.99, up 28.8% from $12.41 in 2024. Microsoft’s EPS growth reflects both the underlying net income growth and the accretive effect of its ongoing buyback program, which reduces diluted share count by approximately 0.5–1.0% annually. Microsoft Annual Diluted EPS by Year Year Diluted EPS YoY Change 2025 $15.99 +28.8% 2024 $12.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/free-cash-flow-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/free-cash-flow-history/Microsoft Free Cash Flow: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) generated $5.9 billion in free cash flow in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). Calendar-year 2025 free cash flow totaled approximately $77.4 billion, compared to $70.0 billion in 2024. Free cash flow (OCF minus capital expenditure) is the metric investors use to assess how much cash Microsoft can return to shareholders or deploy for acquisitions after investing in the infrastructure necessary to maintain and grow the business.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/gross-margin-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/gross-margin-history/Microsoft Gross Margin: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) posted a gross margin of 68.0% in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). The calendar-year 2025 average gross margin was approximately 68.6%, up from 69.4% in 2024. This steady percentage-point expansion is one of the clearest signals of Microsoft’s revenue mix shift toward premium cloud and AI services. Gross margin at a technology platform company like Microsoft is both a profitability indicator and a strategic signal. When gross margin expands quarter-over-quarter while revenue also grows, it indicates the company is scaling its highest-margin products faster than its lower-margin ones — exactly what Microsoft’s Azure and Copilot strategies are designed to achieve.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/gross-profit-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/gross-profit-history/Microsoft Gross Profit: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) reported gross profit of $55.3 billion in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). Calendar-year 2025 gross profit totaled approximately $209.5 billion, up 15.3% from 2024. Microsoft’s gross profit trajectory reflects the sustained shift toward higher-margin cloud and software revenue, which carries significantly lower cost of goods sold than traditional hardware or on-premises licensing. Gross profit is the most important profitability metric to watch at Microsoft because it captures the inherent economics of the software and cloud model: once infrastructure is built, incremental revenue from additional cloud customers or Microsoft 365 seats flows through at very high gross margins.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/total-debt-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/total-debt-history/Microsoft Long-Term Debt: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) carried $40.3 billion in long-term debt as of 2025 Q4. Microsoft uses debt strategically and conservatively — with a AAA credit rating (one of only two US companies with that distinction), it can borrow at near-sovereign rates. Its balance sheet carried significantly more cash and investments than debt throughout the 2020–2025 period, making it effectively net cash-positive despite the nominal debt balance. Microsoft Long-Term Debt vs.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/net-income-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/net-income-history/Microsoft Net Income: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) reported net income of $38.5 billion in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). Calendar-year 2025 net income totaled approximately $119.3 billion, up 28.6% from $92.8 billion in 2024. Net income includes the effect of Microsoft’s equity income from the OpenAI investment, which can create quarter-to-quarter volatility depending on how OpenAI’s carrying value is adjusted. At approximately 38.9% net profit margin, Microsoft generates more than 35 cents of bottom-line profit for every dollar of revenue — a remarkable achievement for a company at this scale that is simultaneously investing in transformational AI infrastructure.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/net-profit-margin-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/net-profit-margin-history/Microsoft Net Profit Margin: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) posted a net profit margin of 47.3% in 2025 Q4. The calendar-year 2025 average net profit margin was 38.9%, up from 35.4% in 2024. Net profit margin expansion has been the compounding outcome of gross margin expansion (cloud mix) plus operating leverage (revenue growing faster than expenses) plus interest income (from the investment portfolio at higher rates). Microsoft Annual Net Profit Margin by Year Year Net Margin Change 2025 38.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/operating-cash-flow-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/operating-cash-flow-history/Microsoft Operating Cash Flow: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) generated $35.8 billion in operating cash flow in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). Calendar-year 2025 operating cash flow totaled approximately $160.5 billion, up 27.8% from $125.6 billion in 2024. Microsoft is one of the world’s largest cash generators, and its operating cash flow has grown consistently alongside net income due to the cash-light nature of the software and cloud model. Operating cash flow is the most reliable measure of Microsoft’s ability to fund its own operations, investments, and capital returns (dividends and buybacks) without accessing external capital markets.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/operating-income-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/operating-income-history/Microsoft Operating Income: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) reported operating income of $38.3 billion in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). Calendar-year 2025 operating income totaled approximately $142.6 billion, up 21.1% from $117.7 billion in 2024. Microsoft’s operating leverage is among the strongest in large-cap technology — the company has consistently grown operating income faster than revenue over the 2020–2025 period. Operating income — revenue minus cost of goods sold and operating expenses — is the clearest measure of Microsoft’s core business profitability before financing and tax effects.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/operating-margin-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/operating-margin-history/Microsoft Operating Margin: 2020–2025 Microsoft (MSFT) posted an operating margin of 47.1% in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025). The calendar-year 2025 average operating margin was approximately 46.6%, up from 44.9% in 2024. The operating margin trend since 2020 is one of the most consistent expansion stories in large-cap technology: every year, Microsoft’s operating margin has expanded as Azure and 365 revenue grow faster than the cost base. An operating margin above 40% places Microsoft in the elite tier of large-cap technology companies — comparable to Alphabet’s search business in isolation, and substantially higher than the blended margins of more diversified technology conglomerates.https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/revenue-history/Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://visuwire.com/companies/microsoft/revenue-history/Microsoft Revenue: 2020–2025 Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) reported quarterly revenue of $81.3 billion in 2025 Q4 (October–December 2025, Microsoft FY2026 Q2). Calendar-year 2025 revenue totaled approximately $305.5 billion, up 16.7% from $261.8 billion in 2024. Microsoft’s revenue growth story over this period is anchored by the transformation of Azure cloud into the company’s primary growth engine, supplemented by Copilot-driven expansion across the Microsoft 365 productivity suite. From a largely on-premises software company generating roughly $150 billion in annual revenue in 2020, Microsoft evolved into a cloud-first platform generating over $300 billion annually by 2025.