IBM improves gross margins in Q2 under new CEO
PUBLISHED MON, JUL 20 20204:08 PM EDTUPDATED 19 MIN AGO
Jordan Novet
@JORDANNOVET
IBM’s adjusted earnings fell 31% and beat analysts’ expectations.
The company’s revenue declined year over year for the second quarter in a row, with coronavirus playing a role across multiple business lines.
SVP and Director at IBM Research Arvind Krishna
SVP and Director at IBM Research Arvind Krishna speaks on stage during the 2016 Wired Business Conference in New York on June 16, 2016.
Brian Ach | Getty Images
IBM shares rose more than 6% in extended trading on Monday after the company reported second-quarter earnings that were better than analysts had expected.
Here’s how the company did:
Earnings: $2.18 per share, adjusted, vs. $2.07 per share as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.
Revenue: $18.12 billion, vs. $17.72 billion as expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.
Adjusted earnings per share were down 31% on an annualized basis in the quarter, and revenue declined 5%, according to a statement. It’s the company’s second consecutive quarter of revenue decline as the coronavirus hit the company’s results.
The company’s net income, which came out to $1.36 billion, was down 46%. However, the company improved gross margins in three of its five units, partly thanks to job cuts. IBM’s total gross profit margin was 48%, up from 45.1% in the first quarter and up from 47% in the year-ago quarter.
IBM did not update its full-year guidance. In April IBM withdrew its guidance for the full year because of the pandemic.
Revenue from IBM’s Global Technology Services category totaled $6.32 billion, down almost 8% year over year and above the FactSet consensus of $6.24 billion.
IBM’s Cloud and Cognitive Software segment, which includes Red Hat, produced $5.75 billion in revenue. That’s up 3% and barely above than the $5.74 billion FactSet consensus. Red Hat revenue was $1.09 billion on a normalized basis, up 17%. The growth rate was down from 18% in the first quarter.
The Global Business Services unit had $3.89 billion in revenue, which is down 7% and slightly higher than the $3.87 billion consensus.
In the quarter IBM announced cloud business from Movius and Prysmian Group, and it told the News & Observer newspaper in North Carolina that it was cutting a number of employees. And Arvind Krishna started his job as IBM’s CEO on April 6.
Executives will discuss the results with analysts on a conference call starting at 5 p.m. Eastern time.
Excluding the after-hours move, IBM stock has fallen 5% so far this year.
This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
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