More Videos
| As of Wednesday, November 25th: |
LATEST EARNINGS RESULTS
- AIG, Ex-CEO Greenberg Reach Pact to Settle Disputes
- Bank of America CEO Search May Extend Into 2010
- Steepest Black Friday Discounts, Revealed
- 'Cancer of Fraud' Permeates Health Care System: Critics
- US Mint to Suspend American Eagle Gold 1-Ounce Coins
- Judge Erases Couple's $525,000 Mortgage Payment
- For Many in US, It Will Be a Scaled-Down Holiday Season
- Where Do Pardoned Turkeys Go?
- Jobless Claims Below 500,000, Durable Orders Slip
- 4 Thanksgiving Week Buys For Your Portfolio: Market Pros
- There's a 'Great Chance' For a Double-Dip Recession: Strategist
- Revenge of the Gangsta Nerds
- Will TCU See The "Flutie Effect?"
- Retail Earnings and Sales to Improve in Q4: Analyst
- Consumers Catching the Holiday Spirit
- It's Beginning To Look A Lot More Riskless
- Crescenzi: Claims Level Suggests End to Job Losses
- Hedge Funds Take Early Lead in Warren Buffett's 'Big Bet'
MOST SHARED
- S&P Stocks Trading at New 52-Week Highs
- Judge Erases Couple's $525,000 Mortgage Payment
- Where Do Pardoned Turkeys Go?
- The Executive Job Search
- Garlic Price Rises Surpass Gold, Stocks in China
- New-Home Sales Jump 6.2% To Highest Level in Over Year
- US Plans to Reduce Emissions By 17% Within Next Ten Years
- Salvation Army's Kettles Now Credit Card-Ready
- Activision Prepares to Double Dip on ‘Modern Warfare 2’
- US Mint to Suspend American Eagle Gold 1-Ounce Coins
Text Size 
Dell reported earnings that declined 5 percent but easily exceeded expectations, sending its shares higher in late trading.
 |
Elise Amendola / AP |
Dell's earnings dipped to $727 million in the quarter that ended Oct. 31, down from $766 million a year ago. But Dell bought back a significant number of shares over the last year, pushing earnings per share up 9 percent, to 37 cents per share.
Analysts put Dell's earnings for the quarter at 31 cents a share, on a topline of $16.22 billion, according to a consensus estimate compiled by Thomson Reuters.
Shares of Dell [DELL
Loading...
()
] rose more than 5.5 percent in extended trading Thursday. They closed the day's regular session down 5.23 percent at $9.81.
Dell bought back a significant number of shares over the last year, partly explaining the 9 percent per-share earnings increase.
Dell blamed a corporate spending slowdown for the sales decline, saying that its consumer PC sales improved by 10 percent.
In the Americas, Dell's largest region for sales to businesses, revenue dropped 8 percent. (See Jim Goldman's report on Dell's earnings announcement, left.)
"The company was able to report above expectations as cost-cutting efforts offset revenue growth. It was certainly a surprise and what this shows is that cost-cutting initiatives are beginning to take effect," said Technology Analyst Bill Kreher of Edward Jones.
"The slowdown in PC demand affected laptop sales and thus revenue, but despite the difficult environment, the company's strategic plans are paying off. It shows that best-of-breed companies will be able to still grow through cost-cutting," Kreher added.
"We expect the challenging environment to continue," Dell Chief Financial Officer Brian Gladden said during a conference call.
In one bright spot, Dell's consumer PC revenue increased 10 percent worldwide as unit shipments jumped 32 percent. Dell does not break out U.S. consumer sales, but Gladden said that "the U.S. was a strong part of the good performance."
However, Dell's consumer sales account for less than a fifth of the company's total, and the bright performance wasn't able to offset trouble in the corporate business. Dell also lacks the product diversity enjoyed by its biggest rival, Hewlett-Packard [HPQ
Loading...
()
], which this week posted stronger-than-expected preliminary results and forecast full-year profit above Wall Street estimates.
—Wire services contributed to this story.
Print
Email
- TiVo Reports Quarterly Loss but Matches Forecasts
TiVo announced a quarterly loss that matched analysts' forecasts, but its sales topped expectations.
- Hewlett-Packard Profit Rises, Matches Guidance
Hewlett-Packard said a strong performance in China and improved profit margins in its services business helped drive quarterly earnings 14 percent higher.
- Analog Devices Results Beat Expectations; Shares Rise
Analog Devices reported a quarterly profit that fell from a year ago but topped Wall Street's expectations, sending shares higher in extended trading.
- TiVo Reports Quarterly Loss but Matches Forecasts
- Tyson Food Profit Beats Estimates
Tyson Foods posted higher-than-expected quarterly results on Monday on strength in its beef, pork and prepared foods businesses, which it expects to continue in its new fiscal year.
- Tyson Food Profit Beats Estimates
- Horton Results Miss Estimates, Shares Drop
- Dell Shares Smacked as Earnings, Sales Miss Forecasts
- Gap Reports Earnings in Line With Forecasts
- Intuit Posts Narrower-Than-Expected Loss
- Sears Posts Second Consecutive Quarterly Loss
- BJ's Wholesale Profit Falls, Hurt by Falling Food Prices
- Salesforce Profit Beats Forecasts, but Shares Fall
- Autodesk Shares Fall on Disappointing Outlook
- Home Depot Profit Beats; Says Markets Under Pressure
- Target Third Quarter Profit Up, Cautious on Fourth
- Weak US Housing Market Drags on Lowe's Profit
- JC Penney Profit Falls, but Shares Up on Forecast
- Disney Profit, Sales Top Forecasts; Shares Jump
- Nordstrom Earnings Miss Forecasts; Shares Take Hit
- Wal-Mart Holiday Forecast Light, Profit Beats
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes