Technology

Dell’s AI Servers Expected to Drag on Margins

Dell’s AI-oriented servers, which are providing a boost to sales, come at a cost for margins. CFO Yvonne McGill says on a call with analysts that a higher mix of AI-optimized servers will likely weigh on margins for the year, and the company expects the gross margin rate to decline about 150 basis points. Inflationary input cost and competition are also factors in the gross margin shift. Gross margin declined 250 basis points in 1Q as the company faced steep competition on prices and higher AI server mix. Shares fall 18% to $139.65 post-market.

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Dell Facing Price Pressure On Servers and PCs

Dell Technologies is cutting prices in the face of steep competition across multiple product lines. The company notes that competition was a pressure on margins in 1Q. CEO Michael Dell says that the downcycle in personal computers has made for strong competition, with major promotions from the holiday season continuing into 1Q. He also notes that in AI servers, where sales are booming, the company is not the price leader–and those offerings tend to come with lower margins. “We’re not the one running the price down,” he says. “We are again getting a premium for the value that we’ve generated or created in our products.” Dell shares fall 19% post-market.

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Salesforce Offers Weak Forecast After Mixed Fiscal First Quarter; Stock Plunges After Hours

$Salesforce (CRM.US)$ late Wednesday reported revenue that fell short of Wall Street estimates and offered a downbeat outlook for the ongoing three-month period, though earnings topped expectations. Revenue gained 11% to $9.13 billion, but fell short of the $9.15 billion consensus compiled by Capital IQ. Adjusted per-share earnings rose to $2.44 during the three months ended April 30 from $1.69 a year earlier, topping the Street view of $2.38. Subscription and support revenue gained 12% to $8.59 billion, while professional services and other fell to $548 million from $605 million. For the current quarter, Salesforce projects adjusted EPS of $2.34 to $2.36 on revenue between $9.2 billion and $9.25 billion. The Street’s view is $2.40 and $9.34 billion, respectively. Salesforce said it continues to expect fiscal 2025 revenue at $37.7 billion to $38 billion. The company now forecasts adjusted EPS of $9.86 to $9.94, up from the prior $9.68 to $9.76

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Salesforce Says AI Demand Is High, But Budgets Are Tight

Salesforce says customers are eager to get their hands on the company’s AI offerings, but tight budgets are getting in the way. COO Brian Millham says on a call with analysts that there is strong demand as companies recognize the value of AI-related offerings. He says CEOs are excited about the opportunity of using AI to improve operations. That said, he said the company is still seeing measured buying behavior. Salesforce saw elongated deal cycles, deal compression and significant scrutiny on budgets in the first quarter. Shares drop 17% to $225.30 post-market.

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Salesforce’s Stock Tumbles as Earnings Provide Latest Dose of Software-sector Pain

By Emily Bary Stock could notch steepest daily decline since 2008 as company sees ‘elongated deal cycles, deal compression and high levels of budget scrutiny’ Investors have been jittery about the software sector this year, and Salesforce Inc.’s latest earnings adds fuel to the fire. The company, seen as a juggernaut in the software industry, came up short with its quarterly revenue guidance, sending its shares sliding 17% in Wednesday’s after-hours trading. Such a decline, if it holds through Thursday’s close, would be the steepest for Salesforce shares (CRM) since they fell 18% on Aug. 21, 2008. In looking at the current quarter, Salesforce models $9.20 billion to $9.25 billion in revenue, as well as adjusted earnings per share of $2.34 to $2.36. That compares with a consensus view of $9.35 billion and $2.40, respectively. See also: Nvidia, AMD shares see their rallies cool. Will software stocks soon get their

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Salesforce’s Lackluster 1Q Backlog Not Denting FY25 Guidance

Salesforce management held its full-year revenue guidance steady, despite a key leading indicator showing some weakness. Current remaining performance obligations, a proxy the company uses for deferred revenue and backlog, came in below Wall Street expectations, which can signal a hit to sales in future quarters. CFO Amy Weaver says on a call with analysts that the measured buying environment is incorporated in guidance, but the company has also seen strong product demand. Attrition rates remain healthy and the company is central to customers’ businesses, she says. “When I step back and really take a holistic view of the full year, we do feel confident that we will be within our guided range,” she says.

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Salesforce, Inc. (CRM) Q1 2025 Earnings Call Transcript

Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Q1 2025 Results Conference Call May 29, 2024 5:00 PM ET Company Participants Mike Spencer – EVP, Finance and Strategy, IR Marc Benioff – Chair and CEO Amy Weaver – President and CFO Brian Millham – President and COO Conference Call Participants Keith Weiss – Morgan Stanley Brad Sills – Bank of America Brent Thill – Jefferies Kirk Materne – Evercore ISI Karl Keirstead – UBS Raimo Lenschow – Barclays Kash Rangan – Goldman Sachs Mark Murphy – JPMorgan Operator Welcome to Salesforce’s Fiscal 2025 First Quarter Results Conference Call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speakers’ remarks, there will be a question-and-answer session [Operator Instructions]. I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker, Mike Spencer, Executive Vice President of Finance and Strategy and Investor Relations. Sir, you may begin. Mike Spencer Thanks, and good

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Apple’s Adoption Of AI For IPhones Will Drive ‘Multi-Year Upgrade Cycle,’ Say Analysts Ahead Of WWDC: BofA Sets $230 Target For Its ‘Top Pick’

Analysts are predicting a significant shift in the smartphone industry with the introduction of AI-powered “IntelliPhones,” and are reiterating Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as a “top pick.” What Happened: Analysts at Bank of America are expecting the advent of AI smartphones, or “IntelliPhones,” to trigger a major upgrade cycle, akin to the introduction of smartphones. These devices are predicted to dominate edge AI, outperforming AI PCs due to their portability, features, and cost. “We expect the adoption curve of AI phones to be faster than the adoption of smartphones. With an installed base of over 4 billion smartphones, we see the opportunity for the next upgrade cycle to be once in a decade type of event,” the analysts at Bank of America Securities said in a note seen by Benzinga. While Apple is not expected to reveal all the AI features at the upcoming WWDC, a pathway for “IntelliPhones” to become mainstream is

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CFRA Maintains Buy Opinion On Shares Of Apple Inc.

According to data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT), shipments of foreign-branded phones in China increased 52% in April. AAPL is not specifically broken out; the iPhone does represent an overwhelming majority of foreign-branded smartphone units. This builds on the momentum from March after sharp declines in the first 2 months of the year. We think more aggressive pricing discounts is helping unit growth return as CEO Tim Cook alluded to a more competitive environment in China earlier this month. We would note that we, as well as the consensus, currently forecast a decline in China for the Jun-Q (down about 3%-4% Y/Y), typically the trough of the iPhone cycle, providing potential upside should the momentum persist. Separately, we think AAPL’s ambitions towards greater AI capabilities ahead of the iPhone 16 launch this fall should appeal to China consumers and also better positions it at the

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Google Buys Minority Stake in Walmart-Backed Flipkart for $350 Million

Alphabet’s (GOOG, GOOGL) Google is purchasing a minority stake worth $350 million in Indian e-commerce company Flipkart, valuing the firm at $37 billion, Reuters reported Friday, citing a source with direct knowledge of the matter. Flipkart announced Friday, as part of its latest funding round led by Walmart (WMT), that Google will become a minority investor pending regulatory and customary approvals from both parties. “Google’s proposed investment and its Cloud collaboration will help Flipkart expand its business and advance the modernization of its digital infrastructure to serve customers across the country,” Flipkart added. “As a people-led, tech-powered omnichannel retailer helping people save money to live better, Walmart and Flipkart look forward to welcoming Google as a minority investor,” Walmart told MT Newswires.

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Salesforce Makes Comeback With Margins, Growth Improvements, Wedbush Says

Salesforce (CRM) faced challenges but “pulled a comeback story,” with improved margins and growth prospects for fiscal 2025, Wedbush said in a note Tuesday. The company had been facing criticism for lackluster growth and margins for some quarters now, but it has turned around with improving performance. Based on its checks, the brokerage now expects another solid quarter and expects CEO Marc Benioff and the management to overcome the negative sentiment. “Investors will be closely watching [Salesforce] results and commentary from Benioff to further gauge the enterprise demand environment for software and overall appetite for the company’s freshly rolled out AI strategic roadmap with the AI Revolution on the doorstep for the tech world.” Cross-selling was strong this quarter, especially with Mulesoft deals. Despite market challenges, integration of Slack, a cloud-based team communication platform, into the company’s suite shows promise for collaboration deals, Wedbush said. Cost-cutting efforts are slowing down,

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Marvell Technology Q1 Earnings Preview: Investors ‘Particularly Interested’ In Company’s AI Business, Second Half Growth

Semiconductor company Marvell Technology (NASDAQ:MRVL) is set to report first-quarter financial results after market close on Thursday. Earnings Estimates: Analysts expect Marvell to report first-quarter revenue of $1.18 billion,. The company reported $1.32 billion in revenue in last year’s first quarter. Marvell has exceeded analysts’ revenue estimates in eight of the last 10 quarters, including the past five consecutive quarters. Analysts expect the company to report first-quarter earnings per share of 25 cents, compared to 31 cents reported in last year’s first quarter. The company has beaten analysts’ earnings per share estimates in seven of the last 10 quarters, with the fourth quarter results coming in-line with estimates. Marvell previously guided for first-quarter revenue to be $1.15 billion, plus or minus 5%. The company also guided for adjusted first-quarter earnings per share of 23 cents, plus or minus 5 cents per share.

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