HPE bins full-year guidance due to pandemic uncertainty

Vendor is latest to scrap financial guidance over economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19

HPE has binned its full-year financial targets for 2020 due to uncertainty surrounding the impact the COVID-19 pandemic will have on its business.

The infrastructure vendor said in a statement that it expects the coronavirus pandemic to have a negative impact on its sales and business operations and is unable to predict how severe - or how long - the effects will last.

As a result, HPE has pulled its financial guidance for its full year fiscal 2020, which was revised down to GAAP net earnings per share of $1.01 - $1.17 on 3 March.

"While HPE is actively working to mitigate the impact on our business and operations, including proactive outreach to suppliers and prioritising our customers' and partners' needs, as described in the risk factors contained herein, HPE is unable to predict the extent to which the global COVID-19 pandemic may adversely impact its business operations, financial performance and results of operations," the statement reads.

HPE stressed that it has a strong balance sheet and liquidity profile, and said it would provide more information at the end of May during its second quarter earning call.

HPE also announced it has suspended purchases under its share repurchase programme.

The news comes less than two weeks after HPE's closest competitor, Dell Technologies, also withdrew its financial guidance for its fiscal year.

Dell said that, while it is seeing increased demand for work from home solutions and recovering supply chains, it cannot predict the extent to which COVID-19 will impact its business. VMware also pulled its guidance.

HPE reported its Q1 results at the beginning of March, with revenues falling by eight per cent year on year to $6.9bn and earnings from operations by 24 per cent to $348m.