International Business Machines Corp., the world’s largest computer company, said on Thursday that fourth-quarter earnings rose as a weak dollar boosted revenues, and its shares jumped on the news.
The Armonk, New York-based company, which had initially planned to announce results on Jan. 20, said that net income rose to $2.7 billion, or $1.55 per share, compared with $1 billion, or 59 cents per share, a year earlier.
In the year-earlier period, IBM took charges of $1 billion.
The company said that it earned $1.56 per share from continuing operations, compared with earnings of $1.11 per share a year ago, which included 23 cents per share for charges related to the acquisition of PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting.
The company, which sells everything from giant mainframe computers to software to computer services, said that revenue rose 9 percent to $25.9 billion compared with $23.7 billion a year earlier.
On a constant currency basis, revenue rose 1 percent, it said.
Analysts had expected earnings of $1.50 per share and revenue of $25.06 billion, according to Reuters Research, a unit of Reuters Group PLC.
IBM shares rose to $94 in trading before the bell from $90.31 at Wednesday’s close on the New York Stock Exchange.
