“HP” Records The First Quarterly Increase In Personal Computer Sales In Two Years

Computer hardware unit revenue rose 3% to $8.43 billion in the fiscal second quarter, compared to expectations of $8.28 billion.

Business has been declining since May 2022 on a yearly basis. The jump is due to commercial sales, which rose 6% to $6.24 billion. On Wednesday, the company said in a statement that consumer sales continued to decline, falling 3% to $2.18 billion.

Computers between challenges and hopes

The PC market has seen a historic decline over the past two years after many consumers, businesses and schools bought laptops in the early months of the pandemic. In the first quarter, shipments rose 1.5%, the first increase since the end of 2021, industry data analysis firm IDC said in April. Computer manufacturers hope that these numbers signal the end of the recession and that growth will accelerate in 2024 with the launch of devices equipped with a new version of Microsoft’s Windows operating system, in addition to units equipped with chips to deal with artificial intelligence.

Artificial intelligence bet

AI-powered computers, like the ones HP unveiled last week at Microsoft’s conference, will account for about 10% of total shipments in the second half of the year, CEO Enrique Llores said in an interview. He added that the financial impact will be “more significant” in 2025 and 2026 as the company expects the number to rise to about 50% of shipments three years after launch.

The company’s stock price was not significantly changed in late trading after closing at $32.80 in New York. The stock price has risen 9% this year, lagging behind its peer, Dell Technologies, which has more than doubled in value this year due to its enthusiasm for its servers capable of dealing with artificial intelligence.

An opportunity

“Along with growth in shipments, AI-enabled PCs are also expected to come at higher prices, creating more opportunities for PC makers and PC manufacturers,” IDC analyst Jitesh Ubrani said in April. the components”.

In the quarter ended April 30, total sales fell less than 1% to $12.8 billion, compared to analysts’ average forecast of $12.6 billion. Earnings per share, excluding certain items, were 82 cents per share, roughly in line with Wall Street estimates.

HP’s printing business sales fell 8% to $4.37 billion. The company introduced a subscription plan for printers earlier this year, which Loris said is seeing success. He added that a similar plan is being explored for consumer PCs.

As for the third fiscal quarter, HP expected earnings per share, excluding some items, to range between 78 cents to 92 cents per share. Analysts estimate, on average, 85 cents, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.