STOCK WATCH

Compaq ends year with flourish

Compaq has ended the 1998 fiscal year strongly, announcing worldwide revenue for the fourth quarter of $10.9 billion and a net profit of $758 million. But the acquisition of Digital Equipment Corporation and ongoing inventory problems still left Compaq with an overall net loss for 1998 of $2.7 billion.

Amazon.com

Amazon.com revealed that revenue nearly quadrupled to $252.9 million for the fourth quarter ended 31 December 1998, from $66 million for the same period last year. But despite the revenue jump, Amazon.com moved further into the red with an operating loss of $17.8 million for the fourth quarter.

America Online

America Online (AOL) beat analysts' expectations for its second fiscal quarter last week and unveiled its third stock split in less than a year. The company saw revenue increase 62 per cent to $960 million, while net profit soared 340 per cent to $88 million.

SAP

SAP confirmed a lacklustre fourth quarter last week, when it revealed figures for three months ended 31 December 1998, showing profit of DM712 million, down 15 per cent from the same quarter a year ago. Sales jumped 18 per cent to DM 2.59 billion

IBM

IBM is planning a 2-for-1 stock split. Subject to the approval of shareholders, the move will increase the number of authorised common shares of IBM to almost 4.7 billion.

AT&T

AT&T posted a 62 per cent increase in net income for the fourth quarter of 1998. The company posted a profit of $2 billion for the quarter ended 31 December 1998 bringing AT&T's total net income for the year to $6.4 billion.