DELL POSTED much better-than-expected profit and margins, as large and small businesses continued to spend on new technology hardware.

The number two personal computer maker reported a net profit of $927 million (€687 million), or 48 cents a share, in the fiscal fourth quarter ended January 28th, up from $334 million, or 17 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

Excluding items, Dell earned 53 cents a share, beating the average analyst estimate of 37 cents a share. Revenue rose 5 per cent to $15.7 billion, matching Wall Street’s target. Non-GAAP gross margin came in at 21.5 per cent, ahead of analysts’ estimate of 18.6 per cent. For fiscal 2012, Dell expects revenue growth of 5 to 9 per cent, and non-GAAP operating income growth of 6 to 12 per cent.

Shares of Round Rock, Texas-based Dell closed down 1.3 per cent at $13.91 on Nasdaq and were halted in after-hours trading. – (Reuters)