Dell, the world's second-largest personal computer maker, posted a higher-than-expected quarterly profit tonight driven by strong demand and lower operating costs, sending its shares up 5 per cent.
Dell's net income in the three months ended May 2nd rose to $784 million, or 38 cents per share, from $759 million, or 33 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue was $16 billion, up 9 per cent from a year earlier.
Dell said product shipments increased 22 percent in the quarter, driven by a 43 percent surge in unit sales of laptop computers.
Shares in Dell have risen nearly 10 per cent in the past three months, compared with a fall of about 2 per cent for rival Hewlett-Packard, and slightly trailing an 11 per cent rise in the Nasdaq. Dell shares trade at 18.7 times expected 2009 earnings, a premium to HP's 14.9 multiple.