>>>>*******THE WALL STREET JOURNAL********
by: go_with_throttle_up
1/25/00 9:43 pm
Msg: 135273 of 135277
Someone posted a reference to this article and put a VERY NEGATIVE slant on the story. Normally I
would not post the article, for Copyright reasons. I will, this once.<<<
Compaq Computer Profit Slipped In Quarter As Revenue Fell 3.5%
January 25, 2000
HOUSTON -- Compaq Computer Corp. reported Tuesday that its fourth-quarter profit dropped 56% as
revenue fell 3.5% at the computer maker.
PC-Sales Growth Slowed in Fourth Quarter (Jan. 24)
CEO Capellas Touts Web's Role in Compaq's Rebound (Jan. 18)
* * *
Company Profile: Compaq
Compaq late Tuesday said its net income for the fourth quarter was $332 million, or 19 cents a
diluted share, compared with $758 million, or 43 cents a share in the year-earlier fourth quarter.
The recent results included an investment gain of $50 million.
Analysts had expected the company to earn 16 cents a share, according to First Call/Thomson
Financial.
Revenue slipped in the latest quarter to $10.48 billion from $10.86 billion a year ago.
Compaq announced the results after the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange,
where its shares were virtually unchanged Tuesday at $33. But the share rose 5% in heavy trading
Monday after an investment bank upgraded its rating of the company's stock.
"During the second half of this year we took aggressive action to return Compaq to profitable growth,
and fourth quarter results reflect our initial success where it matters most -- in the marketplace," said
Michael Capellas, Compaq president and chief executive officer, in a statement.
Big corporate clients, many industry observers believe, are beginning to snap up technology following
year-2000-related purchasing freezes, and the imminent release of Microsoft Corp.'s Windows 2000
operating system should help spark a raft of server upgrades.
Monday, a technology research group released data showing that for the second quarter in a row,
Compaq lost market share in the U.S., as measured by PC shipments, to Texas neighbor and rival
Dell Computer Corp. Compaq's world-wide shipments rose only 8% as the company continued to
restructure its troubled distribution system. Although Compaq held the lead in global market share, it
slipped to 13.7% from 15.1%, according to International Data Corp.
Compaq, whose corporate PC business has struggled against Dell, has also toiled to integrate Digital
Equipment Corp., which it bought in 1998.
Long and Strong: CPQ!
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