Leigh,
Hi!!
RE:
FT.com
Dell focuses on standardisation
Thursday April 3, 6:55 pm ET
By Scott Morrison in San Francisco and Jonathan Moules in New York
URL:http://biz.yahoo.com/ft/030403/1048313452453_2.html
Dell Computer on Thursday said it was continuing to win market share and sell more high-end products, while the US company aimed to cut $3bn in expenses over the next two years.
Dell opposed to expensing stock options because there was no accurate model to account for them.
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However, the company said it would consider paying a dividend, should the Bush administration enact proposed tax laws.
Dell also said it was well on its way to achieving its target of $60bn in revenue. Dell spent much of its spring analysts' meeting discussing the trend toward standardised technology, which it claims will squeeze proprietary technology into specific niche markets. And officials emphasised that standardised technology was moving from personal computers into more sophisticated corporate computers, known as servers, as well as data storage equipment.
Michael Dell, the company's chief executive, said customers wanted lower-cost servers that were less complex and easier to manage.
The company has said that increasingly advanced standardised technology was enabling Dell to sell higher-margin products to larger corporate customers.
The company said on Thursday that its sales to large corporate customers grew 28 per cent in the fourth quarter last year.
Dell has continued to boost revenues and gain market share in the current technology slump because it uses industry standard technologies, enabling Dell to keep costs low and undercut rivals on price.
Dell said it continued to strive for better market share, improved operating income and higher sales among large corporate customers. The company, which has already trimmed $1bn in costs, said it would target cost cuts of $3bn within the next 24-30 months.
Jim Schneider, the group's chief financial officer, said Dell was considering paying a dividend to shareholders, something the company had never considered before. But he indicated the company would move slowly.
"We are really looking at what the tax laws will be," said Mr Schneider.
On Wednesday, Dell reaffirmed its fiscal first-quarter targets, saying it would earn 23 cents per share, up 35 per cent from a year ago.
And, all this without a recovery! :o)
ESDN
Best, Kemble |
