Dell Computer Corp reported first-quarter results that shattered analysts’ expectations. The PC manufacturer saw net income jump 141% to $198m and earnings per share rocket 157% to $1.08, when the First Call estimate was only $0.93. Dell’s direct market approach continued to produce the great results it did last year when the company nearly doubled its profits, earning $518m on revenue of nearly $8bn. For the quarter, sales in the Americas increased 64% to $1.7bn, and European sales grew 38% to $644m. The company maintains that its website, up and running since July of last year, has continued to generate sales of more than $1m a day. Dell says notebook sales increased 70% for the quarter and desktop sales rose 60%. In addition, server sales increased nearly 350%, leading the company to claim it is the third-largest server vendor in the US and number four in the world, based on unit shipments. Still, servers only account for 6% of systems revenue. The financial outlook remains good, as Dell closed the quarter with cash and marketable securities of more than $1.4bn – an increase of 69% from a year ago – despite spending $200m during the quarter to repurchase shares.
