HPE ‘more focused’ as it delivers strong first quarter

Meg Whitman has heralded her company as “more focused and nimble” after Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) delivered stronger-than-expected results for its first financial quarter of 2016.

This is the first time HPE has reported its results following its HP’s split into HPE and HP Inc last year.

The company, which sells servers, storage, and software for enterprises, reported earnings of $300 million (£212m), with revenue at $12.72 billion (£9bn), down three percent from the previous year. Wall street analysts had expected the company to report sales of $12.68 billion.

“During our first quarter as an independent company, we saw the progress that comes from being more focused and nimble,” said Whitman. Shares jumped five percent on the news last night.

“We delivered a third consecutive quarter of year-over-year constant currency revenue growth, and excluding the impact of recent M&A activity, we saw revenue growth in constant currency across every business segment for the first time since 2010,” she said.

The split, under full support of Whitman, is meant to help both HP Inc and HPE “zero in” on its goals.

Breaking down HPE’s segment results, the company’s enterprise group reported revenue of $7.1 billion (£5bn). However, server revenue fell one percent.

HPE’s enterprise services revenue was $4.7 billion (£3.3bn), down six percent year over year. Infrastructure Technology Outsourcing revenue was down 8 percent, 2 percent in constant currency.

Software revenue was $780 million (£551m), down three percent year over year, but up three percent in constant currency. Net portfolio assets were up 4 percent.