CoreWeave and Nebius fall nearly 5% after Microsoft spending misses estimates
Azure revenue rose 48%, while Microsoft attributed the slower growth in spending to payment timing and fewer finance leases.
By Superpower Daily Editorial Desk2 min read
Microsoft’s quarterly spending fell short of Wall Street expectations on October 28, sending shares of AI cloud providers lower in extended trading. CoreWeave and Nebius dropped almost 5%, while IREN lost about 3%. The reaction put Microsoft’s infrastructure partners under pressure even as the company reported sharply higher Azure revenue.
The figure investors were weighing was $45.2 billion in quarterly capital expenditures and finance leases. That was about 30% higher than a year earlier, but below the $50.7 billion average analyst estimate compiled by StreetAccount. The gap between actual spending and that estimate was $5.5 billion.
Spending growth and Azure growth diverged
The miss was against expectations, not a year-over-year reduction in spending. Microsoft was still committing substantially more money than a year earlier. Its Azure revenue grew faster still: Microsoft said revenue from the cloud business rose 48%, compared with the roughly 30% increase in capital expenditures and finance leases.
Microsoft’s explanation centered on when goods arrived, when it paid for them, and the share of spending represented by finance leases. Those factors, the company said in its earnings presentation, explained why Azure revenue growth outpaced the increase in spending. It pointed to timing and the financing mix rather than weaker Azure growth.
Growth was higher than capital expenditures driven by timing differences between receipt of goods and payment and a lower mix of finance leases.
Microsoft, in its earnings presentation, quoted by CNBC
Microsoft is also a customer
The connection to CoreWeave and Nebius is commercial, not simply a shared exposure to AI stocks. Microsoft relies on specialist cloud providers, often called neoclouds, for AI infrastructure capacity. It is a top customer of CoreWeave, making its spending results directly relevant to one of the companies whose shares fell.
Nebius has a long-term relationship with Microsoft too. Late in 2025, Microsoft signed a nearly $20 billion agreement with the company for computing capacity extending through the 2030s. That existing commitment helps explain why a Microsoft earnings release carries stakes for suppliers beyond Microsoft’s own shareholders.
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