IBM profit up on software, services

SAN FRANCISCO: International Business Machines, the world’s largest technology services company, said on Tuesday that its quarterly profit rose 8% on higher sales of software and computer services.

Net income rose to $1.84 billion, or $1.21 per share, matching Wall Street estimates. A year earlier, it earned $1.71 billion, or $1.08 per share. Revenue climbed 6.6% to $22.03 billion from $20.66 billion a year earlier and topped expectations of $21.9 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.

Following the earnings report in after-hours trading, IBM shares slipped 91 cents to $96.21 after closing up 1%. “The worry going into the quarter was sluggishness (in) server spending, but the fact that IBM pulled off the quarter shows that the diversified portfolio of businesses is working,” said Sunil Reddy, senior portfolio manager at Fifth Third Asset Management, which oversees about $21 billion, including IBM shares.

The company stood by its January forecast of full-year earnings-per-share growth of 10% to 12%, adding that growth would likely be around 11%.