Hewlett-Packard has reported strong second-quarter earnings of $US918 million as a result of solid sales of PCs, printers and imaging products and improvement in the company's measurement business.
Earnings for the second-quarter, which ended April 30, were 34% higher than the $685 million reported a year ago. Earnings per share on a diluted basis were 88 cents, well above expectations of 20 analysts polled by First Call that predicted HP would earn 80 cents per share for the quarter. Last year the company posted earnings per share of 65 cents for the second quarter.
Net revenue for the second-quarter this fiscal year was $12.4 billion, compared with $12 billion in the second quarter last year.
Geographically, revenue was $5.4 billion in the United States, up 2%; $4.5 billion in Europe, up 8%; $1.9 billion in the Asia-Pacific region, down 3%; and $650 million in Canada and Latin America combined, with no change from the same quarter last year.
Overall, sales were particularly strong in PC servers, mobile products and home PCs, according to a company statement. Inventory levels also were "excellent," helping to keep operations efficient, the company noted.
Services and software also grew, led by rapid expansion in the outsourcing business, momentum in consulting and continued strong demand for Windows NT support, HP said. HP OvenView enterprise management and Internet software sales also increased, according to the company.
Meanwhile, color printers and scanners and inkjet printer sales were strong while the company's measurement business grew 14 percent over last year.
HP stock closed on the Nasdaq exchange at $88.75, up 4.5 points for a 5.4 percent increase.
HP, in Palo Alto, California, can be reached at +1-650-857-1501, or at http://www.hp.com/.