Company’s total revenue for the reported quarter down by 1% YoY to $17.73bn
IBM reports net income of $955m for the first quarter of 2021. (Credit: Bjoertvedt/Wikimedia Commons)
International Business Machines (IBM) has reported a net income of $955m for the first quarter of 2021 (Q1 2021), a decrease of 18.7%, compared to $1.17bn in the same quarter of the previous year.
The GAAP earnings per share for the three months ended 31 March 2021 were $1.06 compared to $1.31 in Q1 2020.
The company’s total revenue for the reported quarter was $17.73bn, an increase of 1%, compared to $17.57bn posted in Q1 2020.
The global technology services unit was the most productive of IBM’s businesses, posting revenue of $6.37bn in the first quarter of 2021. However, it was down by 1.5% compared to the revenue of $6.46bn registered in Q1 2020.
IBM’s cloud and cognitive software business registered revenue of $5.43bn in Q1 2021, which is an increase of 3.8% compared to $5.23bn in the same quarter of the previous year.
The global business services unit earned revenue of $4.23bn in the reported quarter, which is a 2.4% growth compared to $4.13bn in Q1 2020.
On the other hand, the systems business of the company increased its first-quarter 2021 revenue to $1.42bn from $1.36bn made in the first quarter of the previous year. The systems business includes IBM’s systems hardware and operating systems software.
IBM said that Red Hat’s revenue increased 17% year-over-year (YoY) during the first quarter of 2021. The company had acquired the open hybrid cloud technologies provider for nearly $34bn in 2019.
Meanwhile, IBM said that its debt is now $56.4bn, following a reduction of $5.1bn since year-end 2020.
IBM senior vice president and chief financial officer James Kavanaugh said: “In the first quarter we continued to improve the fundamentals of our business model.
“With strong cash generation and disciplined financial management, we increased investments in our hybrid cloud and AI capabilities, while significantly deleveraging in the quarter and supporting our commitment to a secure and growing dividend.”
Last week, the company signed a deal to acquire myInvenio, an Italian process mining software company, for an undisclosed price.