Microsoft Rises 3% After Q2 Earnings Beat

is up more than three percent in after hours trading after the company reported its second quarter results. The Windows maker reported a Q2 EPS of $0.78 versus the Street estimate of $0.68. Earnings per share were up three percent from the year-ago period. Revenue came in at $24.52 billion versus the Street estimate of $23.68 billion. Sales were up 14 percent year-over-year. "Our Commercial segment continues to outpace the overall market, and our Devices and Consumer segment had a great holiday quarter," Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, said in a

. "The investments we are making in devices and services that deliver high-value experiences to our customers, and the work we are doing with our partners, are driving strong results and positioning us well for long-term growth." "We delivered record revenue as demand for our business offerings remains high and we made strong progress in our Devices and Consumer segment," said Microsoft CFO Amy Hood, who was also quoted in the company release. "These results reflect our focus on execution, cost discipline, and long-term shareholder value as we continue to drive the strategic transformation of the company." Anticipating positive results, Deutsche Bank

its rating of Microsoft from Hold to Buy this afternoon. The bank also raised its Price Target from $32 to $40. Hewlett-Packard surprised investors earlier this month when it announced that it had brought Windows 7 back to a number of laptops and desktop PCs. This might have seemed like a loss for Windows 8.1, but it is still a win for Microsoft, which will profit from the sale of

Windows-based computer. Nonetheless, Windows 8's market share reached

. Disclosure: