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Each week is full of surprises when you are involved in media.
I guess that’s part of the adrenaline-inducing rush of being in the game, so to speak.
To that end, I was personally surprised by two things this week.
One, not everyone 30 years old and under has heard of Compaq.
As a brief refresher, they made large desktop computers that once connected to a phone jack that connected to the wall that connected to this thing called the World Wide Web (or internet…).
Once all plugged in, you turned on the Compaq (the most popular model was the Compaq Presario) via a switch in the back, logged into something called an AOL (America Online) account, listened to loud techy noises come from the computer, and poof, you were magically connected to friends you just saw in school and complete strangers in faraway lands.
You then got to posting sad songs on your MySpace account because, chances are, you just broke up with your high school sweetheart for the ninth time in a week (or was that just me…).
Hewlett Packard, now split into PC maker HP Inc. (HPQ) and AI server play Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), bought its rival Compaq for about $19 billion in a 2002 deal. (Also check out my recent chat with the CEO of HP and another chat with the CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise.)
HP went on to discontinue the Compaq brand in 2013.
That part of the history lesson done.
The next surprise for me this week is that not everyone under the age of 30 years old remembers the iconic “Dude, you are getting a Dell” TV commercials. These commercials dominated the airwaves when I was in college, and I would argue they put Dell on the map with consumers that barely knew how to use a computer.
I have no idea why the commercials left an impression, but they did.
All in all, these reminded me that I was now moving closer to being a grey-beard at work. I have no actual beard; it just means you are this elder statesman. Weird to be in that place, but you can’t outrun Father Time — even my bionic self. I envy the youth.
Having laid that all out, I actually have a surprise for YOU! That is, did you really know that Dell has totally transformed itself? Just read the company’s annual report here and keep scrolling below.
Dell was founded in 1984 by then-University of Texas student Michael Dell. It made PCs, a lot of them.
Through the years, the company has morphed into part PC maker, part tech player integral to the fabric of the world’s tech infrastructure. Think servers, storage, and other components for entire countries and companies that I won’t bore you listing.
The company is well beyond integrating its behemoth 2016 acquisition of EMC.
I got to spend 25 minutes with Michael Dell this week in NYC at the Citi TMT conference (video above) and was really blown away by what the company is working on. Was I surprised, full-stop? No, because I still read all of the company’s earnings reports and earnings call transcripts. But I was a little surprised to hear how deep the transformation runs at Dell.
On Friday, S&P Global announced that Dell will join the S&P 500, replacing Etsy, on Sept. 23. The move boosted its shares in extended trading, as the company will soon be in index funds that track the S&P 500.
It’s embarking on its latest transformation for the age of AI. Dell said it secured $3.1 billion of AI server sales in the second quarter, almost double the $1.7 billion netted in the preceding quarter.
Sales in the company’s Infrastructure Solutions Group surged 38% to $11.65 billion. AI sales are captured in this segment.
Dell’s Client Solutions Group — which includes sales of PCs and laptops — did see sales drop 4% to $12.41 billion. Consumer sales declined 22% to $1.86 billion, while the commercial business was flat at $10.6 billion.
Dell tells me the AI PC uptake has been pushed out a bit, but he has 200 million-plus Dell computers (aka the installed base). They will need the AI-powered replacements, and that cash will soon start rolling in.
“What organizations are seeing is this is a historic opportunity to make their businesses way more productive and efficient [with AI], while, at the same time, kind of reimagining them given all this capability,” Dell told me.
Another surprise — at least to me — is how cheap the company is being valued at by the market.
Shares of Dell trade on a 13.5x forward PE multiple, according to Yahoo Finance data, well below the S&P 500’s 22.5x. I am not saying the company should be valued on par with Nvidia (NVDA) or even a Salesforce (CRM). But assign Dell a reasonable 15x PE multiple on a reasonable $9.40 a share profit estimate for fiscal 2026 (which would represent about 20% earnings growth), and you have a $141 stock.
Dell’s stock currently trades at $107.
Head-scratching for a company clearly playing a key role in the AI future. Maybe it’s a function of its PC exposure.
Before I venture off to begin shopping for an AI PC, I’d like to note I will be live on Yahoo Finance Monday and Tuesday from the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference at the Palace hotel in San Francisco. This is one of my favorite conferences to cover each year, and we have a ton of big ticker-moving interviews lined up. So tune in, as your wealth could depend on it.
I am sure Dell will come up somewhere in the chats too, dude.
Three times each week, I field insight-filled conversations with the biggest names in business and markets on Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid podcast. Find more episodes on our video hub. Watch on your preferred streaming service. Or listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
In the Opening Bid episode below, State Street head of equity research Marija Veitmane reveals how she picks tech stocks with success for clients.
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Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance’s Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn. Tips on deals, mergers, activist situations, or anything else? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.
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