CDW Reaches Record Sales, Earnings

For the quarter ended Sept. 30, sales rose 16 percent to $1.15 billion from $991 million in the year-ago quarter, while net income increased to $54.9 million from $43.2 million for the same period. Earnings per share during the quarter jumped 28.6 percent, to 67 cents from 50 cents in last year's quarter.

CEO John Edwardson attributes the growth to CDW's strategic initiatives enacted over the past year. "Our strategy has served us exceptionally well as we continue to leverage the strength of the CDW business model," he said. That strategy included increasing the training and productivity of account managers, assigning teams to drive sales of hot technologies, adding higher-end products to its line card, and driving sales into federal government markets.

Analysts agree the company has had a stellar year. "What's impressive about CDW is they've been able to grow both revenue and earnings during the worst downturn in the history of IT," said Brian Alexander, an analyst at Raymond James and Associates. "There are not many companies that have been able to do that in this economy."