Microsoft reported yesterday (Oct. 22) that its revenue was up for the past quarter—despite poor phone and Windows sales—and Wall Street was pleased. The company’s stock price today hit over $53—a level it has not reached since March 31, 2000.
The last time Microsoft’s stock price was that high, the world was just getting used to Windows 2000 (XP was over a year away), Steve Ballmer was still getting used to his new role as CEO of Microsoft, and Destiny’s Child’s “Say My Name” was topping the charts.
In July, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced 7,800 layoffs as he attempts to reshape the company. Since then, the company has released its newest operating system, Windows 10, and showed off a bunch of new original hardware, including the company’s first real laptop. Its bets on hardware, as well as growth in its cloud computing business this past quarter, seem to have been enough to cheer up investors.