Microsoft record market cap gain on AI cloud growth

Microsoft reported fiscal Q4 2026 results on July 30, 2026, with revenue of $90 billion (up 18%) and net income of $35.8 billion, beating estimates. Azure cloud revenue grew 43%, the fastest since 2022, and surpassed $100 billion for the fiscal year. Microsoft 365 Copilot paid seats exceeded 30 million, up from 20 million last quarter. The company forecast Q1 FY2027 sales midpoint of $90.4 billion and Azure growth of 45%, both above estimates. It also adjusted its calendar 2026 capital expenditure forecast down to $175 billion from $190 billion, after an accounting change for data center leases. Microsoft signed over $130 billion in new data center leases in Q2 and reported contracted cloud backlog of $678 billion. CEO Satya Nadella confirmed plans for a Copilot 'super app' merging chat, coding, and autonomous agents, launching this year. The stock surged over 15% on July 30, adding nearly $450 billion in market value, the largest single-day gain in history, surpassing Nvidia's previous record. The results eased investor concerns about AI spending, as free cash flow of $19.6 billion beat estimates. Microsoft also reported gains from investments in OpenAI and Anthropic.