Key Points
- Microsoft (Weiruan 微软) stock soared over 7.6% after reporting Q3 results that beat expectations, adding a staggering $224 billion USD (¥1.62 trillion RMB) to its market cap, driven by strong Azure cloud growth.
- Apple (Pingguo 苹果) stock dropped over 4% in after-hours trading despite beating overall earnings estimates and announcing a massive $110 billion USD stock buyback.
- Concerns about slowing iPhone growth and a miss in revenue from Greater China ($16.0 billion USD) contributed to Apple’s stock decline.
- Amazon (Yamaxun 亚马逊) shares also dipped over 2% after hours, potentially due to a slight miss in AWS revenue growth and Q2 guidance that was near or slightly below analyst expectations.
- Other key market movements included a significant drop for Eli Lilly (Lǐlái 礼来) and mixed performance among US-listed Chinese stocks (ADRs) like Alibaba and Tencent.
Let’s dive into the latest market shake-ups, including Microsoft’s massive overnight gains and why Apple and Amazon saw their stocks dip even after reporting earnings.
On the morning of May 2nd, Beijing time (after the May 1st US market close), things were looking up for major US stock indexes.
The Nasdaq jumped 1.52%, the S&P 500 climbed 0.63%, and the Dow Jones edged up 0.21%.
Impressively, both the S&P 500 and the Dow marked their eighth straight day of gains.
Big tech mostly joined the party:
- Microsoft (Weiruan 微软) absolutely soared, up over 7.6%.
- Meta climbed over 4%.
- Amazon (Yamaxun 亚马逊) rose over 3%.
- NVIDIA (Yingweida 英伟达) gained more than 2%.
- Google saw an increase of over 1%.
- Apple (Pingguo 苹果) managed a slight rise during regular trading.
- Tesla (Tesila 特斯拉), however, ended the day down.
Resume Captain
Your AI Career Toolkit:
- AI Resume Optimization
- Custom Cover Letters
- LinkedIn Profile Boost
- Interview Question Prep
- Salary Negotiation Agent
Microsoft’s Blowout Quarter & Skyrocketing Valuation
Microsoft (Weiruan 微软) turned heads with its fiscal year 2024 third-quarter results (for the period ending March 31).
The numbers didn’t just meet expectations; they crushed them.
- Q3 Revenue: $70.07 billion USD, easily beating the $68.42 billion USD forecast. That’s a solid 12% year-over-year increase.
- Q3 Net Profit: $25.82 billion USD, representing an 18% jump year-over-year.
This performance added a staggering $224 billion USD (roughly ¥1.62 trillion RMB) to Microsoft’s market capitalization practically overnight.
What’s fueling this growth? A big part of the story is the cloud.
Microsoft’s guidance for the next quarter was incredibly bullish, especially for its Azure cloud business.
- Q4 Revenue Forecast: Projected between $73.15 billion USD and $74.25 billion USD (market expected $72.26 billion USD).
- Azure Growth Forecast: Anticipated growth between 34% and 35%, significantly higher than the 31.5% analysts predicted.
This strong performance and outlook clearly signal Microsoft’s continued dominance and successful leveraging of the AI boom within its cloud infrastructure.
Apple Beats Estimates, But Stock Slips After Hours
Now for the twist: Apple (Pingguo 苹果) reported its fiscal year 2024 second-quarter results, and while the numbers looked good on paper, the stock took a tumble in after-hours trading, dropping over 4%.
Let’s break down Apple’s Q2 (ending March 29, 2024):
- Total Revenue: $95.36 billion USD (beat expectations of $94.3 billion USD), up from $90.75 billion USD last year.
- Net Profit: $24.78 billion USD (beat expectations of $24.26 billion USD), up from $23.64 billion USD last year.
- Earnings Per Share (EPS): $1.65 USD (beat expectations of $1.62 USD), up from $1.53 USD last year.
On top of the earnings beat, Apple’s board greenlit a massive $110 billion USD stock repurchase program – that’s a huge signal of confidence (and a way to return value to shareholders).
They also announced a 4% increase in the cash dividend to $0.26 USD per share.
So, why the drop? A few factors seem to be at play.
iPhone Sales & China Concerns
While overall iPhone revenue hit $46.84 billion USD (slightly above the expected $45.84 billion USD), the growth was less than 2% compared to last year ($46.0 billion USD) and significantly lower than two years ago ($51.3 billion USD).
More pointedly, revenue from Greater China came in at $16.0 billion USD.
This was a 2.3% decrease year-over-year and missed the $16.83 billion USD expectation.
This slowdown in a critical market likely spooked investors about future growth trajectories.
Tariffs and Supply Chain Jitters
Apple explicitly flagged concerns about trade tensions.
The company listed “trade and other international disputes” as a key risk factor.
They estimated that current global tariffs could add around $900 million USD to their costs in the third fiscal quarter (ending in June).
CEO Tim Cook addressed some of these points:
- He stated iPhone inventory levels were stable, suggesting no artificial demand pull-forward due to tariffs.
- He confirmed Apple plans to source $19 billion USD worth of chips from the US this year.
- He reiterated plans to manufacture more components (chips, glass, facial recognition modules) in the US as part of ongoing supply chain diversification.
Despite the earnings beat and the massive buyback, the combination of slowing iPhone growth, the miss in China, and explicit warnings about tariffs seemed to outweigh the positives in the immediate market reaction.
Find Top Talent on China's Leading Networks
- Post Across China's Job Sites from $299 / role, or
- Hire Our Recruiting Pros from $799 / role
- Qualified Candidate Bundles
- Lower Hiring Costs by 80%+
- Expert Team Since 2014
Your First Job Post
Amazon Also Dips Despite Strong Q1 Numbers
Amazon (Yamaxun 亚马逊) faced a similar fate, dropping over 2% in after-hours trading following its Q1 earnings release.
Here’s a look at Amazon’s Q1 performance:
- Q1 Revenue: $155.7 billion USD (beat expectations of $154.92 billion USD), up from $143.31 billion USD year-over-year.
- Q1 Operating Income: $18.4 billion USD (beat estimate of $17.51 billion USD).
- Q1 Operating Margin: 11.8% (beat expectation of 11.2%).
- Q1 North America Net Sales: $92.89 billion USD (beat expectation of $92.63 billion USD).
- Q1 Physical Store Net Sales: $5.53 billion USD (beat expectation of $5.41 billion USD).
- Q1 AWS Net Sales: $29.3 billion USD (slightly missed expectation of $29.41 billion USD).
- Q1 AWS Net Sales Growth (ex-FX): 17% (slightly missed expectation of 17.2%).
While most metrics looked strong, the slight miss on AWS revenue and growth might have contributed to the negative reaction.
Amazon’s guidance for the next quarter also played a role:
- Q2 Net Sales Forecast: $159.0 billion USD to $164.0 billion USD (The midpoint is slightly below the analyst expectation of $161.42 billion USD).
- Q2 Operating Income Forecast: $13.0 billion USD to $17.5 billion USD (The midpoint is below the analyst expectation of $17.82 billion USD).
Even with solid current results, guidance that doesn’t decisively beat expectations can sometimes lead to a pullback, especially for high-growth tech stocks.
ExpatInvest China
Grow Your RMB in China:
- Invest Your RMB Locally
- Buy & Sell Online in CN¥
- No Lock-In Periods
- English Service & Data
- Start with Only ¥1,000
Other Market Movers: Eli Lilly & Chinese ADRs
In other notable movements, pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly (Lǐlái 礼来) saw its shares plummet over 11%, marking its most significant single-day drop since 2008. (This move seems unrelated to the tech earnings cycle but was a major market event).
Turning to US-listed Chinese stocks (ADRs), the picture was mixed:
- iQIYI (Aiqiyi 爱奇艺) gained over 1%.
- Alibaba (Alibaba 阿里巴巴), JD.com (Jingdong 京东), XPeng (Xiaopeng Qiche 小鹏汽车), and Li Auto (Lixiang Qiche 理想汽车) saw small increases.
- NIO (Weilai 蔚来) fell more than 2%.
This highlights the complex dynamics affecting different sectors and specific company outlooks within the broader market movements, including the robust performance driving Microsoft’s market cap.
FAQs
Why did Microsoft’s stock jump so much?
Microsoft (Weiruan 微软) reported significantly better-than-expected earnings for its fiscal Q3 2024, beating revenue and profit estimates. Crucially, it also issued very strong guidance for future growth, particularly for its Azure cloud business, fueled by AI demand. This combination boosted investor confidence and sent the stock soaring, adding $224 billion USD (approx. ¥1.62 trillion RMB) to its market cap overnight.
Why did Apple stock drop after beating earnings?
Despite beating overall revenue and profit expectations and announcing a massive $110 billion USD stock buyback, several factors likely caused Apple’s (Pingguo 苹果) stock to drop after hours. These include slowing iPhone revenue growth, a year-over-year decline in sales in Greater China (missing expectations), and explicit warnings about the potential impact of global tariffs on future costs.
What is a stock buyback and why did Apple announce one?
A stock buyback, or share repurchase, is when a company buys its own shares back from the marketplace. This reduces the number of outstanding shares, which can increase earnings per share (EPS) and potentially boost the stock price. Companies often do this when they believe their stock is undervalued or want to return cash to shareholders. Apple’s (Pingguo 苹果) announcement of an additional $110 billion USD buyback is one of the largest ever and signals financial strength and a commitment to shareholder returns.
How did Chinese tech stocks perform?
The performance of popular US-listed Chinese tech stocks (ADRs) was mixed during this period. iQIYI (Aiqiyi 爱奇艺) saw gains, while Alibaba (Alibaba 阿里巴巴), JD.com (Jingdong 京东), XPeng (Xiaopeng Qiche 小鹏汽车), and Li Auto (Lixiang Qiche 理想汽车) had small increases. However, NIO (Weilai 蔚来) experienced a decline of over 2%.
What’s the big deal about cloud growth (Azure/AWS)?
Cloud computing divisions like Microsoft’s Azure and Amazon’s AWS are major profit drivers for these tech giants. Strong growth in cloud indicates high demand for services like data storage, computing power, and increasingly, AI capabilities. Robust cloud growth (like Microsoft’s projected 34-35% for Azure) is seen by investors as a key indicator of future revenue and technological leadership, significantly impacting stock valuations.
References:
Original Source:
Related Articles:
![China’s A-Share Giants Rake It In- Banks Top ¥2 Trillion RMB Annually, ICBC Nears ¥1 Billion RMB Profit Daily [FreshFromChina]](https://freshfromchina.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Chinas-A-Share-Giants-Rake-It-In-Banks-Top-¥2-Trillion-RMB-Annually-ICBC-Nears-¥1-Billion-RMB-Profit-Daily-FreshFromChina-150x150.png)
![Explosion in Chinese Assets: HK Stocks & Concept Shares Roar Higher [FreshFromChina]](https://freshfromchina.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Explosion-in-Chinese-Assets-HK-Stocks-Concept-Shares-Roar-Higher___FreshFromChina-150x150.png)