Growth in Asia and strong sales of notebook computers helped Dell Inc. beat Wall Street expectations for first-quarter sales and profit.<\/p>\n
That strong report pushed shares of Dell, the world's second-largest seller of personal computers, up 9.9 percent in late trading Thursday.<\/p>\n
Now, investors will try to determine if the results were a one-term wonder or a sign that founder and CEO Michael Dell's turnaround plan is working.<\/p>\n
\nNotebook shipments jumped 43 percent in the first quarter compared with a year earlier. Dell had made them a priority, developing products for emerging markets, and the Round Rock, Texas-based company rang up more sales overseas than at home for the first time in the first quarter.<\/p>\n
Revenue rose 19 percent in Asia and 15 percent in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, helping Dell overcome a weak U.S. market where businesses were cutting back on technology spending.<\/p>\n
“Dell did relatively well, but it was against low expectations,” said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research who rates the shares “neutral.”<\/p>\n
They rose 12 cents Thursday, closing at $21.81 in regular trading before the results were released, then jumped $2.16 to $23.97 in late trading.<\/p>\n
Still, the results added to the sense that technology spending “is turning out a little better than expected,” Wu said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Growth in Asia and strong sales of notebook computers helped Dell Inc. beat Wall Street expectations for first-quarter sales and profit.<\/p>\n
That strong report pushed shares of Dell, the world's second-largest seller of personal computers, up 9.9 percent in late trading Thursday.<\/p>\n
Now, investors will try to determine if the results were a one-term wonder or a sign that founder and CEO Michael Dell's turnaround plan is working.<\/p>\n
\nNotebook shipments jumped 43 percent in the first quarter compared with a year earlier. Dell had made them a priority, developing products for emerging markets, and the Round Rock, Texas-based company rang up more sales overseas than at home for the first time in the first quarter.<\/p>\n
Revenue rose 19 percent in Asia and 15 percent in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, helping Dell overcome a weak U.S. market where businesses were cutting back on technology spending.<\/p>\n
“Dell did relatively well, but it was against low expectations,” said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research who rates the shares “neutral.”<\/p>\n
They rose 12 cents Thursday, closing at $21.81 in regular trading before the results were released, then jumped $2.16 to $23.97 in late trading.<\/p>\n
Still, the results added to the sense that technology spending “is turning out a little better than expected,” Wu said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n