Profit warning — Dell joins Apple, HP

Dell said it expects earnings for the fourth quarter, ending Feb 2, of 18 to 19 cents per share, down from its previous estimate of 26 cents. Analysts on average had been expecting 25 cents a share, according to First Call/Thomson Financial. The slowdown in the economy and in the computer sector “has been greater than anyone had expected,†Dell chief financial officer Jim Schneider said in a conference call.

He said Dell’s aggressive and competitive pricing during the fourth quarter had hurt earnings per share but had helped the company increase its market share. Dell gained two percentage points of market share in the calendar fourth quarter, research firm International Data Corp. said last week, gaining on No. 1 personal computer maker Compaq. Schneider said that without the aggressive pricing measures, the company’s fourth-quarter revenues may have been lower than the $8.5 billion to $8.6 billion it now expects.

Austin, Texas-based Dell said it expects fourth-quarter revenues to be up 25 to 27 percent from a year ago but below its previous estimate of $8.7 billion. Schneider did not provide guidance for fiscal 2002, saying low visibility for the year ahead made it difficult to give forecasts. He said, however, that Dell was “confident†about its prospects for long-term growth.

Analysts, too, were upbeat about the company’s future. “We continue to believe that Dell’s model remains fundamentally advantaged and that the company’s prospects are bright with respect to an increasing mix of enterprise hardware,†Merrill Lynch said in a research report.