REDMOND, Wash. (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. will try to build on the positive buzz about the next version of Windows when the world's largest software maker releases its latest quarterly results after the stock market closes Thursday.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Most people liked what they saw last month when Microsoft released a developer version of Windows 8, the most radical makeover of the top-selling personal computer operating system in 16 years. The next generation of Windows is designed to run on touch-screen devices that boot up faster -- features aimed at tapping into the computer tablet craze that is currently dominated by Apple Inc.'s iPad.
The main problem for Microsoft: the iPad and other tablets could be even farther ahead by the time Windows 8 is ready to hit the mass market. Although Microsoft hasn't set a timetable for Windows 8's general release, analysts doubt it will happen until middle of next year, at the earliest. If Microsoft drops any hints that Windows8 will be in stores earlier than mid-2012, it would be embraced on Wall Street.
Microsoft, which is based in Redmond, Wash., needs a lift. Investors have been worried that Microsoft hasn't been adapting quickly enough to the new ways people and businesses are using technology as tablets and mobile phones lessen the need for laptops and desktop computers.
The shift already has been reducing demand for the Windows franchise that has long been Microsoft's financial cornerstone.
Microsoft's revenue in the division that includes the Windows software has fallen from the previous year in each of the previous three quarters.
PC sales were sluggish yet again in the July-September period, although they may have picked up just enough for Microsoft to revive its revenue growth in Windows. Shipments rose by 3.2 percent to 3.6 percent, based on estimates released last week by Gartner Inc. and IDC.
Apple is expected to announce huge gains in iPad sales when it releases its quarterly results after the stock market closes Tuesday.
Microsoft has been faring better selling software and other services to businesses. Its Xbox 360 video game console also has been thriving in recent quarters.
The company's online services division remains a financial drain, largely because its Bing search engine still hasn't been able to make much headway against Google Inc. The division has suffered operating losses totaling $6.5 billion in Microsoft's last three fiscal years.
Microsoft is hoping to make a bigger dent in mobile computing and digital video with its just-completed $8.5 billion acquisition of video chat service Skype. The company is trying to make its stock more enticing by raising its quarterly dividend 25 percent to 20 cents per share. The dividend hike, announced last month, isMicrosoft's largest increase since the company began making the payment seven years ago.
WHY IT MATTERS: Microsoft is trying to prove that it's not turning into a technological dinosaur. The doubts about Microsoft's future relevance are the main reason the company's stock is worth less than it was five years ago. During the same stretch, Google shares have risen by nearly 40 percent while Apple shares have increased by more than fivefold. .
WHAT'S EXPECTED: Analysts surveyed by FactSet forecast earnings of 68 cents per share on revenue of $17.2 billion.
LAST YEAR'S QUARTER: Microsoft earned $5.4 billion, or 62 cents per share, on revenue of $16.2 billion in the same period last year.