Latest news with #JeffClarke
Bloomberg
2 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Dell Operating Chief Takes Over PC Unit in Face of Slow Demand
Dell Technologies Inc. has reorganized some of its leadership, putting Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke directly in charge of its personal computer unit amid a prolonged slump in that business. Clarke, who joined Dell in 1987 and is also vice chair, will oversee the company's Client Solutions Group, according to a memo to the staff seen by Bloomberg and confirmed by Dell. The unit, which includes desktop and notebook computers for corporate clients and consumers, had been run by Sam Burd.
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Prediction: This Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock Could Ride Nvidia's "Golden Wave" Next
Nvidia and other large tech companies are building AI factories, creating unprecedented demand. Dell Technologies' AI server sales skyrocketed last year. Dell's AI orders continue to flow in, creating a significant -- and growing -- backlog. 10 stocks we like better than Dell Technologies › There will be many winners as infrastructure is built to support the huge and increasing computing power needed for artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Nvidia continues to pave the way and has already been a huge beneficiary thanks to its leading advanced chips, software, and engagement with developers. Nvidia's revenue has soared from what was then a record $61 billion in fiscal 2024 to more than $130 billion in its fiscal year 2025, ended Jan. 26. That growth continues as sales in the first half of fiscal 2026 are expected to be approximately $90 billion. It's all about the company's data center segment, as companies -- as well as sovereign nations -- quickly invest in infrastructure to expand AI capabilities. That infrastructure includes servers and cooling systems that are provided by Dell Technologies (NYSE: DELL). The company's revenue has also been soaring, and it is well positioned to ride AI's "golden wave" along with Nvidia. Dell isn't a pure-play AI stock, but it has already seen benefits from the AI revolution. Revenue hasn't soared quite as much as it has for Nvidia, but Dell's Infrastructure Solutions Group saw sales hit a record $43.6 billion in fiscal 2025, up 29% year over year. Zoom in specifically to its AI server business, though, and the growth is more impressive. Server shipments generated nearly $10 billion, up over sixfold from $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2024. Demand continued to grow in the company's fiscal 2026 first quarter, and the period ended on May 2 with a $14.4 billion AI backlog. Chief operating officer Jeff Clarke called the demand unprecedented, adding, "We generated $12.1 billion in AI orders this quarter alone, surpassing the entirety of shipments in all of [fiscal 2025]." That's all because of the huge data centers and AI training factories being built by large growth companies as well as sovereign governments -- all of it supported by Nvidia and its powerful products. Meta Platforms, Amazon, Alphabet, and Microsoft collectively have plans to spend as much as $320 billion this year investing to expand AI capabilities. Another group of tech companies is partnering with ChatGPT creator OpenAI for the Stargate Project, with another $500 billion in AI infrastructure investments planned over the next several years. OpenAI has also started a program intending to help regions outside the U.S. launch large AI projects. Dell servers will likely be part of most of this development. It's why the stock has quickly rebounded from its April lows. That growth is driving investors to Dell stock. But there are other reasons to own it, too. The company's Client Solutions personal computer segment is also integrating AI for commercial and retail clients. That segment provides a stable cash flow base and it generated more revenue than the Infrastructure Solutions group last year. Management is returning some of that cash flow to shareholders. It increased its annual dividend by 18% for the current fiscal year, and its board of directors approved a $10 billion increase in its share repurchase authorization. The company says it is committed to returning at least 80% of its adjusted free cash flow to shareholders. It also plans to raise its dividend at least 10% annually through fiscal year 2028. That shareholder-friendly approach should make investors feel good. Yet surging demand and a large and growing backlog for its AI servers are what really make it a good time to buy Dell stock. It has more runway ahead to ride the golden wave of AI along with Nvidia. Before you buy stock in Dell Technologies, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Dell Technologies wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $697,627!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $939,655!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,045% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 178% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 30, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Howard Smith has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Dell Technologies, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Prediction: This Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stock Could Ride Nvidia's "Golden Wave" Next was originally published by The Motley Fool
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Dell execs sound alarm with consumer comments
Dell execs sound alarm with consumer comments originally appeared on TheStreet. Jeff Clarke was feeling the love. Clarke, vice chairman and chief operating officer of Dell Technologies () , was giving analysts the rundown on the tech company's first-quarter report. 💵💰Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter 💰💵 The report included a backlog of orders for confirmed artificial intelligence systems valued at $14.4 billion. "We love where the backlog is," Clarke said during the Round Rock, Texas, computer maker's earnings call. "It's healthy." He said Dell was off to a good start "but we have much in front of us.""The customer deployments that we have in front of us are large, they're complex, they have very detailed scheduled deliveries," Clarke said. "There's lots of dependencies on this. We've talked about this business being lumpy and nonlinear." While AI momentum remained strong, he said, "given the scale of these opportunities, variability and timing and choices around technology, the inherent nonlinear nature of demand and associated shipments is likely to persist." Dell's fiscal-first-quarter earnings missed Wall Street expectations, but the revenue number beat estimates and the forecast for the current quarter was stronger than Wall Street expected. Clarke told analysts that Dell executed very well in the quarter, "achieving growth across our core markets." Demand for AI-optimized servers was "exceptionally strong," he said. More Tech Stocks: Palantir gets great news from the Pentagon Analyst has blunt words on Trump's iPhone tariff plans OpenAI teams up with legendary Apple exec Dell built "on the momentum discussed in February and further [demonstrated] that our differentiation is winning in the marketplace," he said, referring to the company's previous quarterly report. "We had over $12 billion in AI orders this quarter alone, which will drive significant revenue growth and EPS," he said. Still, Clarke said "the consumer market remains challenged." "Consumer revenue declined 19% and the industry pricing remained competitive," he said. Yvonne McGill, Dell's chief financial officer, said the company was expecting "subseasonal performance in traditional server and storage, our larger profit pools that provide scale, as customers evaluate their IT [spending] for the year given the dynamic [macroeconomic] environment." "We saw strong performance across small and medium business and large enterprise," she said. "In consumer, the demand environment remains soft and profitability remains challenged." McGill said Dell was focused on executing within the Client Solutions Group to capture the Microsoft () Windows PC refresh. Clarke said that while the PC refresh remains behind prior cycles, "we are seeing indicators that the installed base is upgrading to new Windows 11 PCs, many of them AI PCs." Dell is one of AI-chip maker Nvidia's () primary vendors, and the U.S. Department of Energy said its Doudna computer, due in 2026, will use technology from the two tech companies. The computer, named for the Nobel Prize-winning scientist Jennifer Doudna, who made key Crispr gene-editing discoveries, will be housed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif., Reuters reported. Dell shares are down nearly 35% from a year ago and off 3.4% this year. Several investment firms issued research reports after the company reported its results. Bank of America Securities raised its price target on Dell to $155 from $150 and affirmed a buy rating on the shares. Earnings came in at the low end of guidance due to modest tariff impacts to margins at Client Solutions and slightly weaker growth from Intelligent Security Systems, the company's video-management and -analytics software solutions, the investment firm "the highest level," B of A said Dell could deliver significantly higher AI server revenue over the next two years of greater than $30 billion with strong upside to EPS with momentum in AI servers picking up. JP Morgan raised its target on Dell to $125 from $111 and maintained an overweight rating, according to The Fly. AI-server demand and orders in Q1 as well as greater than typical deployment expectations for Q2 "were the bright spot in an otherwise subdued outlook," JP Morgan wrote. Dell's traditional Enterprise demand drivers are softer and driving incremental caution into the back half of the year, the firm said. TD Cowen analyst Krish Sankar boosted the firm's price target on Dell Technologies to $125 from $120 and reiterated a hold rating. He called the $12 billon of April-quarter AI-server orders and expected July-quarter AI shipments of roughly $7 billion key positives. The macroeconomic environment might present a modest headwind for traditional server and consumer demand while tariffs and commodity costs are inflationary execs sound alarm with consumer comments first appeared on TheStreet on Jun 1, 2025 This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
Miami Herald
01-06-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Dell execs sound alarm with consumer comments
Jeff Clarke was feeling the love. Clarke, vice chairman and chief operating officer of Dell Technologies (DELL) , was giving analysts the rundown on the tech company's first-quarter report. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter The report included a backlog of orders for confirmed artificial intelligence systems valued at $14.4 billion. "We love where the backlog is," Clarke said during the Round Rock, Texas, computer maker's earnings call. "It's healthy." He said Dell was off to a good start "but we have much in front of us." Related: Veteran trader makes bold move with Palantir, Rocket Lab and SoFi "The customer deployments that we have in front of us are large, they're complex, they have very detailed scheduled deliveries," Clarke said. "There's lots of dependencies on this. We've talked about this business being lumpy and nonlinear." While AI momentum remained strong, he said, "given the scale of these opportunities, variability and timing and choices around technology, the inherent nonlinear nature of demand and associated shipments is likely to persist." Bloomberg/Getty Images Dell's fiscal-first-quarter earnings missed Wall Street expectations, but the revenue number beat estimates and the forecast for the current quarter was stronger than Wall Street expected. Clarke told analysts that Dell executed very well in the quarter, "achieving growth across our core markets." Demand for AI-optimized servers was "exceptionally strong," he said. More Tech Stocks: Palantir gets great news from the PentagonAnalyst has blunt words on Trump's iPhone tariff plansOpenAI teams up with legendary Apple exec Dell built "on the momentum discussed in February and further [demonstrated] that our differentiation is winning in the marketplace," he said, referring to the company's previous quarterly report. "We had over $12 billion in AI orders this quarter alone, which will drive significant revenue growth and EPS," he said. Still, Clarke said "the consumer market remains challenged." "Consumer revenue declined 19% and the industry pricing remained competitive," he said. Yvonne McGill, Dell's chief financial officer, said the company was expecting "subseasonal performance in traditional server and storage, our larger profit pools that provide scale, as customers evaluate their IT [spending] for the year given the dynamic [macroeconomic] environment." "We saw strong performance across small and medium business and large enterprise," she said. "In consumer, the demand environment remains soft and profitability remains challenged." McGill said Dell was focused on executing within the Client Solutions Group to capture the Microsoft (MSFT) Windows PC refresh. Clarke said that while the PC refresh remains behind prior cycles, "we are seeing indicators that the installed base is upgrading to new Windows 11 PCs, many of them AI PCs." Dell is one of AI-chip maker Nvidia's (NVDA) primary vendors, and the U.S. Department of Energy said its Doudna computer, due in 2026, will use technology from the two tech companies. The computer, named for the Nobel Prize-winning scientist Jennifer Doudna, who made key Crispr gene-editing discoveries, will be housed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, Calif., Reuters reported. Dell shares are down nearly 35% from a year ago and off 3.4% this year. Several investment firms issued research reports after the company reported its results. Bank of America Securities raised its price target on Dell to $155 from $150 and affirmed a buy rating on the shares. Earnings came in at the low end of guidance due to modest tariff impacts to margins at Client Solutions and slightly weaker growth from Intelligent Security Systems, the company's video-management and -analytics software solutions, the investment firm said. Related: Nvidia CEO turns heads with stern warning about China AI market At "the highest level," B of A said Dell could deliver significantly higher AI server revenue over the next two years of greater than $30 billion with strong upside to EPS with momentum in AI servers picking up. JP Morgan raised its target on Dell to $125 from $111 and maintained an overweight rating, according to The Fly. AI-server demand and orders in Q1 as well as greater than typical deployment expectations for Q2 "were the bright spot in an otherwise subdued outlook," JP Morgan wrote. Dell's traditional Enterprise demand drivers are softer and driving incremental caution into the back half of the year, the firm said. TD Cowen analyst Krish Sankar boosted the firm's price target on Dell Technologies to $125 from $120 and reiterated a hold rating. He called the $12 billon of April-quarter AI-server orders and expected July-quarter AI shipments of roughly $7 billion key positives. The macroeconomic environment might present a modest headwind for traditional server and consumer demand while tariffs and commodity costs are inflationary factors. Related: Veteran fund manager unveils eye-popping S&P 500 forecast The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Forbes
30-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Dell Taps Qualcomm's AI 100 Chips For Upcoming Pro Max Plus Laptops
At Dell Technologies World 2025 in Las Vegas earlier this month, as you might expect in this day and age, many of the announcements and releases revolved around AI and AI-driven solutions. The day one and two keynote speeches from Michael Dell and Jeff Clarke, both specifically highlighted advancements in AI, from the cloud to the edge, along with AI factories and modern workplace solutions. As a long-time accelerated computing enthusiast, I thought one particular announcement, regarding an upcoming Dell Pro Max Plus mobile workstation, flew a bit under the radar. The Dell Pro Max Plus is a premium 18' desktop-replacement class laptop designed specifically with AI engineers and data scientists in mind. In fact, it is the first machine of its kind to feature not one, but two enterprise-grade discrete NPUs, namely the Qualcomm AI 100. Each AI 100 features 16 of Qualcomm's 7th-gen AI cores with 144 MB of on-chip memory, and each is capable of delivering up to 400 Int8 TOPs and 200 FP16 TOPs of compute performance. Each AI 100 is also paired to 32GB of LPDDR4X memory (64GB in total) offering up to 136GB/s of peak bandwidth, but the entire complement of AI compute resources and memory are presented to the system as a single resource pool. Qualcomm's AI 100 accelerators in the Dell Pro Max Plus are integrated on a custom PCB, that is attached via PCI Express, and installed in the laptop where a discrete GPU would normally reside. Incorporating the discrete AI accelerators with a relatively large memory capacity in this way allows the system to handle large AI models locally, without relying on the cloud, that are simply too much for most on-processor NPUs and discrete GPUs. This is a key differentiator for the Dell Pro Max Plus; the ability to process AI workloads directly on the device enhances security, reduces latency, and ultimately gives users greater control over their proprietary data. Dell's decision to integrate a discrete AI accelerator card rather than a GPU does have some drawbacks, however. While the Qualcomm AI 100s with 64GB of memory will be capable of running models that are simply too large to fit in the 24GB of memory available in even NVIDIA's current, most powerful laptop GPU, the NVIDIA RTX PRO 5000 Blackwell Generation, these Qualcomm chips don't handle any graphics processing or 3D rendering. That will obviously limit gaming on the system (which likely isn't a concern for the users targeted by the Dell Pro Max Plus), but it will also hinder some creator and pro-vis workloads as a result. The Dell Pro Max Plus is built around Intel's most powerful Core Ultra 200HX series processors and offers up to 96GB of system memory, so it'll have plenty of CPU horsepower and a relatively capable integrated GPU with a modern media engine, but neither can make up for the lack of a discrete GPU in some workloads. There are also products built around AMD's 'Strix Halo' Ryzen AI Max series of processors to consider. Strix Halo has a somewhat unique design that combines up to 16 CPU cores with a powerful GPU, connected to system memory over a 256-bit wide memory interface. In a system with 128GB of memory, the GPU in the Ryzen AI Max series can access up to 96GB of memory, which would technically allow it to process even larger models than the pair of AI 100s in the Dell Pro Max Plus, but without as much compute muscle. All that said, the upcoming Dell Pro Max Plus with Qualcomm AI 100s still represents an interesting value proposition for AI engineers and data scientists that can benefit from a mobile form factor. The AI PC landscape is still taking shape, but there's no denying it's here to stay and the need for AI compute resources isn't going away anytime soon. It's great to see Dell taking a chance on an innovative solution and I suspect the Dell Pro Max Plus has many potential users intrigued.
