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IBM showed off some impressive numbers yesterday despite slower Q4 revenue.  The company posted $4.4 billion profit in Q4 of 2008 vs $4.0 billion for the same quarter in 2007; that is a 12% increase to you and me.  The company is proving it’s move to higher margin product focus such as SaaS is paying off for the company.

The one megalithic company began divesting itself back 1991 with the sale of the Lexmark printer division.  This moved was followed by offloading its PC business to Lenovo in 2005.  No long encumbered by these dragging units, IBM is not an active player in the market, recently sidling up to RIM with Lotus compatibility.

“A strong fourth quarter capped an outstanding year. In 2008 IBM performed well in an extremely difficult economic environment. Clearly our strategic transformation—- migrating to the more profitable segments of the industry, investing in growth regions of the world, and driving productivity through global integration—- is continuing to pay dividends,” said Samuel J. Palmisano, IBM chairman, president and chief executive officer.

The company set records in 2008 to include record revenue, record pre-tax profit, record earnings per share, record free cash flow.  Often in marketing, we are told brands have a life cycle and should be allowed to die.  Clearly, IBM still has some good years left in it after winning the PC war back in the 1980s.

Company site: [IBM]