After eight consecutive quarterly declines, HP posted a 2.4 per cent increase in revenue to $13.52 billion (A$19.9 billion) for the third quarter of this year.
That figure beat Wall Street analysts’ average estimate of $13.38 billion (A$19.7 billion).
However, HP has also forecast a fourth-quarter profit below Wall Street estimates and cut its expectations for the year.
The company decreased its fiscal year 2024 adjusted profit forecast to be in the range of $3.35 (A$4.93) to $3.45 (A$5.08) per share, compared with its prior outlook of between $3.30 (A$4.86) to $3.60 (A$5.3) per share.
Analysts expect annual adjusted profit per share of $3.45 (A$5.08), according to LSEG data.
The PC maker expects fourth-quarter adjusted profit per share to be between 89 cents and 99 cents, the midpoint of which was below LSEG estimates of 95 cents.
One of the factors that are believed to have contributed to HP’s growth this quarter is that consumers are now in the midst of a device upgrade with PCs featuring AI-capable processors and Copilot features now reaching the market.
HP expects commercial PC momentum to continue, alongside a slower recovery in the print market, CEO Enrique Lores said in a post-earnings call according to Reuters, adding that “competitive environment continues to be difficult,” especially in print and in office.
CFO Karen Parkhill noted that HP expects lower than usual seasonal growth for its personal systems segment, home to its desktop and notebook PCs.
Most major manufacturers have debuted AI-capable Windows-based models over the last few months which has now increased the sheer competition among PC makers in this space.
In May, HP completely overhauled its PC branding. While its Pavilion, Envy, and Spectre products were made for consumers, its Dragonfly devices were made for enterprise use.
Those lines are now retired, and all its devices are clubbed under two main lines: consumer and commercial.
These lines include the Omni prefix for consumer devices and the Elite prefix for commercial devices. Its gaming PCs will continue to live under the Omen name.
As for its AI PC push, it unveiled the HP OmniBook X AI PC, and HP EliteBook Ultra AI PC.
Overall, worldwide PC shipments across manufacturers reached 64.9 million units in the second quarter of 2024, a year-on-year growth of 3 per cent, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC).
The top five brands leading global PC shipments were Lenovo, HP, Dell, Apple and Acer group, with HP shipping 13.7 million units.
