As its first-quarter profits beat market expectations, IBM has lifted its full-year profit forecasts.
“On the strength of this performance, we are raising our full-year 2011 operating earnings per share expectations to at least US$13.15 (from $3),” said Sam Palmisano, IBM chairman, president and chief executive officer.
The tech giant noted increased revenues of $24.6bn, a jump of 8pc from 2010 figures.
Palmisano said revenue growth was seen across hardware, software and services divisions. He also said double-digit growth had been achieved in more than 40 countries.
“We continued to see excellent momentum in our growth initiatives – smarter planet, cloud, business analytics and growth markets – which bring together the full value of the IBM portfolio,” he added.
Sales of its mainframe computer drove revenues, with the product selling 41pc more than it did in the same period last year.
First-quarter net income was $2.9bn compared with $2.6bn in the first quarter of 2010, an increase of 10pc.
The computer maker today announced first-quarter 2011 diluted earnings of $2.31 per share, compared with diluted earnings of $1.97 per share in the first quarter of 2010.
The strong results were completely unexpected as IBM does 11pc of its business in Japan, which has been devastated by the 11 March earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis.
Article courtesy of Businessandleadership.com
