While the Xbox 360 has been getting all the attention lately, financial analysts are more interested in the performance of Windows Vista, which will be reflected in Microsoft's fourth-quarter and full-year financial report today.
The company said it expects earnings for the quarter of $5.0 billion to $5.2 billion, before a charge of up to $1.15 billion related to problems with Xbox 360 hardware.
That would translate to earnings per share of 37 to 39 cents — the average of analyst predictions is 39 cents — before the impact of the Xbox charge.
The charge, from a warranty extension on the game consoles, could trim up to 8 cents a share from earnings.
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