PALO ALTO (dpa-AFX) - HP Inc. (HPQ), the PC and printer business of the former Hewlett-Packard Co., on Tuesday reported a profit for the fourth quarter that met analysts' expectations driven largely by a higher-than-expected revenues. The PC giant detailed a first-quarter outlook below consensus.
HP's fourth-quarter profit dropped to $492 million or $0.28 per share from $1.32 million or $0.73 per share last year. Excluding one-time items, adjusted earnings for the quarter were $0.36 per share, up from $0.30 per share last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.36 per share.
Revenues for the quarter rose 2 percent to $12.51 billion from $12.27 billion last year. On a constant currency basis, revenues were up 4 percent. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $11.88 billion for the quarter.
Last year, HP separated into two independent companies Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. (HPE) and HP Inc. - in an effort to curb costs improve its sluggish sales. Hewlett Packard Enterprise, with more than $50 billion in annual revenue, provides technology solutions, while HP Inc. supplies PCs and printers.
HP, which is the No. 2 maker of personal computers behind Lenovo Group Ltd., has been negatively impacted by shrinking demand for PCs and notebooks as tablets and smartphones continue to gain popularity.
However, in the third quarter, although worldwide PC shipments declined 5.7 percent, HP's shipments rose 2.3 percent, according to Gartner Inc. HP's market share also improved to 20.4 percent from 18.8 percent a year ago.
Personal Systems revenue rose 4 percent to $8.02 billion. HP said printing revenue dropped 8 percent to $4.56 billion with supplies revenues down 12 percent and consumer hardware unit down 9 percent.
Looking forward to the first quarter, HP expects adjusted earnings of $0.35 to $0.38 per share. For the full-year 2017, HP sees adjusted earnings of $1.55 to $1.65 per share. Analysts currently estimate earnings of $0.38 and $1.60 per share for the full year.
HPQ closed regular trading at $15.95, down $0.05 or 0.31%, on the NYSE. The stock further dropped $0.35 or 2.19% in the after-hours trade.
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