Dell Rides Strong Demand for Laptops, Desktops, Cloud Services Due to Remote Work to Beat Q2 Revenue Estimates

Dell beat market estimates for second-quarter revenue on Thursday as the shift to hybrid work kept demand strong for its laptops, desktops and cloud services.

People globally continue to spend on computer devices even after a year of working from home. Figures from International Data showed shipments of PCs rose 13 percent from April to June, but the pace of growth was much slower than last year's frenzy.

While the industry has faced pressure from components shortage and supply chain woes, revenue at Dell's client solutions unit - home to its hardware devices - surged 27 percent to a record $14.3 billion (roughly Rs. 1,05,990 crores).

Its cloud-computing unit, VMware, grew 8 percent, thanks to orders from companies looking to cut costs and expand their digital presence.

Total revenue jumped 15 percent to $26.12 billion (roughly Rs. 1,93,600 crores), beating the analysts' average estimate of $25.53 billion (roughly Rs. 1,89,230 crores), according to Refinitiv data.

The reopening of the economy has redirected some consumer spending away from computers to other sectors. But a recent rise in COVID-19 cases has prompted renewed curbs and could potentially boost the demand for remote-working equipment.

Dell's net income fell to $880 million (roughly Rs. 6,520 crores), or $1.05 (roughly Rs. 80) per share, in the quarter ended July 30, from $1.01 billion (roughly Rs. 7,490 crores), or $1.37 (roughly Rs. 100) per share, a year earlier.

© Thomson Reuters 2021