Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications
    • Cloud
    • IT Management

    IBM Forced to Report Fifth Straight Year of Revenue Declines

    By
    Chris Preimesberger
    -
    April 19, 2017
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin
      IBM.Watson

      IBM had some good and some not-so-good news regarding its earnings on April 18. Like several other longtime IT product and service providers, the venerable company is experiencing some sharp financial pains in making the switchover to software and cloud services from its traditional IT hardware businesses.

      The earnings report beat Wall Street projections for the quarter ($2.38 vs. $2.35 per share, as per Thomson Reuters analysts), but there was no running away from the fact that Big Blue’s revenue has decreased in each of the last five fiscal years, amounting to 20 consecutive quarters.

      For the full fiscal year, IBM came in flat at $13.80 per share versus $13.78 per share expected by Thomson Reuters.

      Revenue from continuing operations in Q1 2017 totaled $18.2 billion, coming in 3 percent short of the $18.39 billion projected by Thomson Reuters analysts. Income the company earned from so-called “strategic imperatives” amounted to $7.8 billion in the quarter, up 12 percent year over year.

      For IBM, “Strategic imperatives” include businesses such as cloud, analytics, mobility and security.

      IBM has the right to celebrate the direction in which its cloud services and infrastructure businesses are heading. The strategic imperatives revenue of $33.6 billion during the last 12 months comprised nearly half (42 percent) of IBM’s fiscal year revenue. Cloud-related revenue (services, storage, tool licensing, others) grew to $14.6 billion during the last 12 months, the company said.

      Nonetheless, the Armonk, N.Y.-based corporation has experienced a five-year run of year-over-year revenue declines dating back to April 2012.

      “The portfolio will grow. I am confident that the IBM company will grow again,” Chief Financial Officer Martin Schroeter told CNBC. “We’re taking time to make sure we invest in the right places and make sure we get the kind of margin high-value profile we’re looking for.”

      Schroeter said the company increased research and development spending during the last quarter. Research and development costs were indeed higher, climbing to $1.53 billion during the quarter, up from $1.46 billion a year ago.

      “For us what it’s always been about for us is a shift as much as it is adding to that pie,” Schroeter said in the conference call. “So I think the adding to the pie now is behind us and the shift will continue. So we’ll continue to invest heavily in the strategic imperatives, but it won’t represent the same growth that we’ve seen in the past.”

      In its corporate statement, IBM published the following quote from Chairman, President and CEO Ginni Rometty: “In the first quarter, both the IBM Cloud and our cognitive solutions again grew strongly, which fueled robust performance in our strategic imperatives. In addition, we are developing and bringing to market emerging technologies such as blockchain and quantum, revolutionizing how enterprises will tackle complex business problems in the years ahead.”

      Chris Preimesberger
      https://www.eweek.com/author/cpreimesberger/
      Chris J. Preimesberger is Editor Emeritus of eWEEK. In his 16 years and more than 5,000 articles at eWEEK, he distinguished himself in reporting and analysis of the business use of new-gen IT in a variety of sectors, including cloud computing, data center systems, storage, edge systems, security and others. In February 2017 and September 2018, Chris was named among the 250 most influential business journalists in the world (https://richtopia.com/inspirational-people/top-250-business-journalists/) by Richtopia, a UK research firm that used analytics to compile the ranking. He has won several national and regional awards for his work, including a 2011 Folio Award for a profile (https://www.eweek.com/cloud/marc-benioff-trend-seer-and-business-socialist/) of Salesforce founder/CEO Marc Benioff--the only time he has entered the competition. Previously, Chris was a founding editor of both IT Manager's Journal and DevX.com and was managing editor of Software Development magazine. He has been a stringer for the Associated Press since 1983 and resides in Silicon Valley.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×