Bell Micro Beats 3Q Forecasts With $436K Profit

Analysts had expected a loss of 3 cents per share, according to Thomson Financial/First Call.

The San Jose-based distributor's revenue rose 13 percent to $552 million, from $489 million for the same period last year.

"Our storage systems sales grew to a record level despite the weak IT spending environment the industry is experiencing," said Don Bell, president and CEO of the company, in a statement. "Overall our solutions products and services segment, which includes storage systems, fibre channel networking products, computing systems, services, software and related products, grew during the quarter and accounted for a record 48 percent of total sales."

Bell said he is "cautiously optimistic" about the fourth quarter outlook.

"We will continue to execute on our profit improvement plans that include ongoing cost-reduction programs and efficient asset management, while continuing persistent focus on our strategic initiatives, including storage systems and solutions," he said.

The company also announced that Jim Illson, who recently joined Bell Microproducts as executive vice president of finance and operations, will also assume the title of CFO. He succeeds Dick Borsboom, who resigned for personal reasons, the company said.

"We are very pleased to have Jim join Bell Micro. His extensive experience in the distribution and enterprise computing industries, in both CFO and CEO positions, uniquely qualifies him as a key contributor to our company as we continue to develop our business," Bell said in a statement.