Microsoft lifted its full-year forecasts and posted 23 per cent quarterly profit growth last night,
The world's largest software maker topped estimates on strong sales of Halo 3and Vista, and its shares rose 11 per cent.
Investors have waited for sales of the new Windows Vista operating system to pick up since its January release. Windows, which sits on more than 90 per cent of all personal computers, generates almost 80 cents in profit for every dollar in sales.
Microsoft beat even Wall Street's most bullish forecast with a net profit of $4.29 billion in its fiscal first quarter, up from $3.48 billion a year earlier.
Revenue rose 27 per cent to $13.76 billion in the three months ended September 30th.
Microsoft shares, already up 10 per cent in the last month, surged to $35.40 in after-hours trade, up 10.7 per cent from the close and their highest since 2001.
Microsoft raised its full-year revenue outlook for its Windows client sales to a range of 12 per cent to 13 per cent versus a previous forecast of 9 per cent to 10 per cent.