Acer Q3 revenue climbs 47 percent as it chases Lenovo

Acer, the world’s fourth-biggest computer retailer, said its revenue rose 47 percent during the third quarter as it narrowed the gap in global PC market share between itself and China’s Lenovo Group.

Acer’s revenue for the three months ended Sept. 30 rose to NT$82.5 billion (US$2.5 billion as of the end of the period reported), from NT$56.1 billion during the same quarter a year ago, the company said. Its net income climbed 37 percent to NT$1.97 billion.

Notebook PC shipments led the way for Acer during the quarter, said Acer President Gianfranco Lanci.

The Taiwanese company’s global share of the PC market grew during the quarter to 4.7 percent, up from 3.6 percent during the same time last year, and inching closer to Lenovo, the third largest PC retailer. Lenovo’s PC shipments in the third quarter rose 13 percent compared to the same time last year, compared to 50 percent for Acer, according to market researcher IDC.

Worldwide PC shipments during the July through September period increased by over 17 percent despite rising interest rates and high oil prices, IDC said earlier this month.

Acer executives expected a strong showing in the fourth quarter as well.

“I think this is still going to be a great quarter for PC industry growth, and I think especially for portable PCs,” said Lanci. He said Acer’s fourth quarter notebook PC shipments would likely grow up to 80 percent compared to the same time last year.

The company’s revenue will also likely rise by as much as 20 percent for the three months ending Dec. 31, compared to the third quarter, he said.

Acer should be able to continue to grow at a fast clip as it focuses on two markets, the U.S. and China, where it has not done well in the past, said J.T. Wang, the company’s chairman. Acer will also put more emphasis on desktop PCs going forward, he predicted, since its notebook PCs are already grabbing market attention.