IBM's third quarter revenue reaches $17.1 billion, surpassing expectations

IBM (IBM.US) reported third-quarter revenue that exceeded analysts’ expectations. The company stated that infrastructure business orders, which had been delayed earlier this year, have now mostly resumed. According to the financial report, for the quarter ending September 30, the company's revenue increased by about 5% year-on-year, reaching $17.1 billion. Revenue from the infrastructure business, including mainframe servers, grew by 4% to $3.7 billion, with both figures surpassing analysts' average forecasts. IBM Chief Financial Officer Kavanaugh said that about two-thirds of the mainframe and related software deals that were delayed earlier this year have now been signed. In July, IBM mentioned that amid chip and server supply shortages driven by the artificial intelligence boom, customers had temporarily shifted spending toward chips and servers, impacting the company’s mainframe and software business. IBM’s much-watched software business saw third-quarter revenue increase by 8.3% to $7.8 billion, surpassing Wall Street’s expectation of $7.64 billion. For full-year performance, IBM currently expects free cash flow to increase by more than $1 billion, above the previous forecast of about $1 billion.