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IT HP Cashes in Big During Q4
Jason Mick (Blog) - November 18, 2008 5:18 PM
Print E-mail del.icio.us 24 comment(s) - last by Raidin.. on Nov 21 at 3:38 PM
Computer maker sees large rise in profits over last year

Hewlett Packard, despite some problems which saw it lose its lead in the U.S. computer business to Dell, continues to dominate the number one spot in world computer sales.  The company's fourth quarter results leaked Monday and it looks like it’s headed for more success in the short term.

In Q4 2008, HP collected $33.6B USD in revenue, up 19 percent from the same quarter a year before.  Adjusting this figure for currency effects, the increase weighed in at a still very impressive 16 percent.

While some companies struggled and shuffled leadership, HP handed shareholders a healthy $1.03 per share, excluding after-tax adjustments.  Adjustments based on restructuring, in-process research and development, and other items amounted to 19 cents per share, dropping this figure slightly to 84 cents per share.

The news of the better than expected quarter leaked ahead of HP's official announcement, which is coming on November 24.  One world economic problem plaguing HP, according to its top executives, is currency rates.  Instability in global currency will cut 5 percent from HP's revenue in Q1 2009, and 6 to 7 percent in the overall coming year, according to the company.

HP is projecting revenue of $32B to $32.5B USD for Q1 2009.  Earnings will also fall slightly from the previous quarter, an expect dip after the holiday season.

It is reported that HP expects to make $127.5B to $130B USD in 2009. 

The good news comes despite the large costs incurred by HP from its acquisition of business and technology services specialist EDS.  EDS cost $13.9B USD to acquire and forced HP to conduct some cost-saving layoffs.

CEO Mark Hurd was pleased with his company's strong performance amid the stormy market.  He stated, "HP delivered another solid quarter, as it continues to benefit from its global reach, diverse customer base, broad portfolio, and numerous cost initiatives.  Our ability to execute in a challenging marketplace differentiates HP, enabling it to increase share, expand earnings, and emerge from the current economic environment as a stronger force."

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yey HP
By Tamale on 11/18/2008 5:28:17 PM , Rating: 5
as far as retail computer builders go, HP is always my first choice. Their business-class laptops are as tough as thinkpads but as good looking as Apple's finest in my opinion, and a much better value than either.

keep it up, guys.




RE: yey HP
By ChugokuOtaku on 11/18/2008 6:16:09 PM , Rating: 5
as good as Thinkpads my foot

no offense, our company uses HPs too
while maybe better than their standard plastic offerings, their enterprise class notebooks still can't compare with Thinkpads.


RE: yey HP
By GeorgeH on 11/18/2008 6:55:44 PM , Rating: 3
I can't speak for their entire range, but Lenovo's W500 and HP's 8530w are at worst a wash quality wise, and at best HP pulls ahead. I've also heard a few complaints that Lenovo's latest T400 is really a step backward in terms of build quality.

Basically, IBM/Lenovo ThinkPad == Win!, Lenovo ThinkPad == Win? ;)


RE: yey HP
By Samus on 11/19/2008 5:36:36 PM , Rating: 2
The W500 isn't a Thinkpad. It's a Lenovo.

The X, T, & R series are Thinkpads. The only one's that matter are the T61 and X61. Aside from very select Panasonic Toughbook's, the T-series is the defacto industry benchmark for what a quality laptop should be.


RE: yey HP
By GeorgeH on 11/19/2008 8:59:33 PM , Rating: 2
1) According to Lenovo, the W-Series are Thinkpads.

2) The W500 and T500 are essentially identical, the only difference being the graphic card and screen options.


RE: yey HP
By elessar1 on 11/19/2008 7:18:28 AM , Rating: 2
Agreed...

My HP Compaq nc8230 is by far the best Business-class laptop i ever have...

It has a great screen (1680 * 1050), not too heavy (6.3 punuds) and it has serve me flawlesly for 2 years...

As for Thinkpads... it troubles me the lack of the "windows" button...

.


RE: yey HP
By elessar1 on 11/19/2008 7:45:14 AM , Rating: 2
Agreed...

My HP Compaq nc8230 is by far the best Business-class laptop i ever have...

It has a great screen (1680 * 1050), not too heavy (6.3 punuds) and it has serve me flawlesly for 2 years...

As for Thinkpads... it troubles me the lack of the "windows" button...

.


RE: yey HP
By AlexWade on 11/19/2008 8:35:40 AM , Rating: 3
I always liked HP because they tended to give you what you want instead of telling you what you want. Case in point, when the Opteron first came out, HP decided to sell it and it was selling well; Dell said nobody wanted it. The Athlon 64 came out, HP sold it; Dell said nobody wanted it. When HD DVD and Blu-Ray were still competing, HP put both on their computers.

HP is always my first choice because HP gives me a choice.


This is good news
By drebo on 11/18/2008 5:30:12 PM , Rating: 4
Say what you will about OEM computers in the home, but the truth of the matter is that businesses need the stability offered by them (not to mention the warranties), and HP's prices are incredibly low. The company I work for used to sell Dells, and we've been transitioning to HP as their support is better, their prices are better, and they don't charge us shipping. Not to mention that their lead time is 2 days, where Dell is 5-7 days or more.

HP is by far the best OEM I've dealt with, and we will continue to use them more and more.

In the server space, I don't trust anyone but HP. Features like iLO really differentiate them from the competition. Not only that, but their servers are cheaper.

I'm glad to see that HP is doing well, and I hope that they continue their success. They're a great partner in business.




RE: This is good news
By quiksilvr on 11/18/2008 5:46:56 PM , Rating: 2
On top of that, they have the best netbook in the market right now IMO.
http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/compute...


RE: This is good news
By murphyslabrat on 11/19/2008 12:10:30 AM , Rating: 2
I would differ, despite being an additional $280, this guy can actually play modern games:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...

While not quite enough to competitively play a game like UT3 or COD4, it will handle AOE3 fine, and therefore, hopefully, Starcraft 2. That is all that matters.


RE: This is good news
By drebo on 11/19/2008 1:42:17 AM , Rating: 2
Yes, but that system is over a pound heavier and costs nearly $300 more. Apples and oranges. That Asus model is a sub-notebook, not a netbook.


RE: This is good news
By quiksilvr on 11/19/2008 12:15:43 PM , Rating: 3
Netbooks are not intended for gaming or connecting to an external display. It's purpose is simple:

1) Internet access
2) Affordability
3) Portability

That Asus sub-notebook is nice, however weighs over a pound more, is bigger in all dimension (length, width, height) and costs 200 bucks more. Why would you want a 9300M GS graphics card for a 10" screen? If it was $499 then that would be awesome but $680 is pushing it.


RE: This is good news
By afkrotch on 11/19/2008 4:07:06 PM , Rating: 2
I'm more of a fan of the Dell Inspiron Mini, but the price is higher. I like Sony's ultraportables, but they started using some really crappy keyboards and also that $1500+ price tag is way too much.


RE: This is good news
By DASQ on 11/20/2008 11:40:12 AM , Rating: 2
Getting rebates from HP are a huge pain in the ass.


Desktops: Dell Beats HP Everytime
By ipay on 11/18/2008 7:32:56 PM , Rating: 2
In my market (big state edu), Dell beats HP every time in price, specs and features. We have a big multi-mega-edu deal with HP. Whenever the new packages are announced, dell beats them by 4 or 5%. As time progresses, the margin increases to about 15 to 20% (literally). And Dell will have the latest processor and other technology, while HP will have the old technology for more money.

Then a new HP package will be announced and the cycle starts again. Plus nearly every hard drive, cable, printer, part or software package that I need is cheaper than the cheapest online price with free shipping.

Nobody beats Dell for us. (Although I do get some laptops elsewhere)




RE: Desktops: Dell Beats HP Everytime
By Shig on 11/18/2008 7:56:31 PM , Rating: 2
HP's CEO and board have to be given a lot of the credit. They have really done a fantastic job leading the company through these tough times. I don't know many other high-tech companies that are profitable atm.


By MrDiSante on 11/19/2008 1:32:50 AM , Rating: 2
I can't speak for business, but mid-high end consumer laptops are definitely Dell's territory. While their standard prices are good but not great, if you catch one of their sales or call them and negotiate the pricing you will beat out the next best alternative thing by 5-10%. Most other retailers just don't do proper deals and are inflexible about their consumer pricing.


podcast.odiogo.com
By BruceLeet on 11/19/2008 12:17:15 AM , Rating: 2
is slowing down the loadings again.

By show of posts who actually uses the podcast?

I speak for many who did not post when I respond with 'meh' of HP's 4th quarter success




RE: podcast.odiogo.com
By Raidin on 11/21/2008 3:38:29 PM , Rating: 2
I just block that site with NoScript on my Firefox, problem solved. =)


interesting...
By Samus on 11/19/2008 2:42:04 AM , Rating: 2
considering the recent recall of nVidia-chipset laptops...

even though it isn't HP's fault (they followed the nVidia thermal design specification adequately) and it was clearly failing nVidia chips (which partially makes it a TSMC manufacturing defect) their name is still on the notebook that is failing. that's hard to swallow for a lot of people that've had their notebook fail. i've worked on two of them, and they are monsterous notebooks (one had two hard drives!) and were not cheap.




RE: interesting...
By mindless1 on 11/19/2008 9:54:53 PM , Rating: 2
1) Not so interesting when you consider the $200M nVidia paid them and that they conceded they could do the repairs for less than the payout per laptop.

2) They didn't follow thermal design specs adequately. Their designs used minimal heatpipes with thick silicone pads and inadequate fan throttling that caused chipsets to run in excess of 80C. Funny thing is, too many people were ignorant of how to check the temperature of their chipset so there was a big momentum started by ignorant users who just jumped to the conclusion that nVidia chips were failing on their own. Run your laptop or desktop CPU or chipset over 85C then tell us how long it lasts.

3) They aren't all monsterous notebooks, some of the lower end models with nVidia integrated video and Turion processors were fairly flimsy and inexpensive. That doesn't make it untrue that some weren't so inexpensive but basically, the reason people end up seeing more 3rd party repair efforts on the expensive ones is the cheap ones weren't worth the cost or time to do so given the uncertainty of whether a repaired notebook would last long term or suffer the same fate again in a few months.


People
By KraftyOne on 11/19/2008 10:34:44 AM , Rating: 2
HP used to be the company that took care of its people too...not anymore. I still think they make good equipment, but they've really lost what made them a great company.

My uncle worked for them for over 30 years...straight out of college...only job he ever had. His designs and ideas made HP A LOT of money over the years. They recently let him go - he had enough years with the company for retirement but was 1 year too young and they wouldn't negotiate at all. Just, "thanks for all the hard work, get out"

They lost any respect they had from me.




RE: People
By Toolsmell on 11/20/2008 2:42:56 AM , Rating: 2
Having worked at HP for 10 years and opting out to take a voluntary severance package, I have a pretty good understanding how HP treats its employees. Your uncle having been with the company for 30 years, would have had many opportunities to leave with a decent severance package. Given his age and length of service, he would've been able to accept more than one EER package(Enhanced Early Retirement) during his career. Since you lack the details of his dismissal, I can only speculate that his project was terminated or he was part of a "Work Force Reduction". I've only known 3 people to get fired from HP and in every instance the employees were engaged in some type of illegal activity. It sucks to lose your job, but I'm sure your uncle isn't telling you everything. When I accepted my severance package, I walked out the door with 5 months pay. No regrets.


"A politician stumbles over himself... Then they pick it out. They edit it. He runs the clip, and then he makes a funny face, and the whole audience has a Pavlovian response." -- Joe Scarborough on John Stewart over Jim Cramer

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