Dell Technologies (DELL) — Company Research

Last Updated: 15 November 2026

Dell Technologies designs and sells servers, storage, networking equipment, PCs and related services to businesses, governments and consumers worldwide. Its Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG) has become the main growth engine as demand for AI-optimised servers built on NVIDIA accelerators has surged, while the Client Solutions Group (CSG) sells commercial and consumer PCs, workstations and peripherals. FY2026 (year to 30 Jan 2026) revenue was $113.5bn, and management now guides to $192.0bn for FY2027. This report covers the latest filings, including Q2 FY2027 results released on 01 Sep 2026; Q3 FY2027 results are due on 24 Nov 2026. Track the shares on our Live Charts, check market-moving events on the Economic Calendar, and join the discussion in the ChartsView Forum.

1. Company Snapshot

2. Bull Case vs Bear Case

Bull Case

• AI server backlog: Q2 FY2027 AI server orders were $60.9bn against shipments of $16.4bn, lifting AI backlog to about $95bn at 31 Jul 2026, up from $43bn entering the year.
• Guidance step-change: FY2027 revenue guidance rose from $167.0bn to $192.0bn and non-GAAP EPS guidance from $17.90 to $25.50, with AI server revenue now guided at about $74bn.
• ISG profitability: ISG operating income was $4,781m in Q2 FY2027, a 15.0% margin on revenue up 89%, showing that scale is translating into profit and not only revenue.
• Market leadership: IDC ranked Dell the largest branded server vendor in Q2 2026 with $22.2bn of revenue and a 13.4% share, more than double Supermicro's 6.1%.
• Capital returns: The dividend was raised 20% to $0.63 a quarter, and about 20m shares were bought back for roughly $5.4bn in the first half of FY2027, with about $15.2bn of authorisation remaining.

Bear Case

• Weak cash conversion: Q2 FY2027 free cash flow was just $986m on $47.0bn of revenue, as AI deals tie up cash in inventory and financing receivables.
• PC downturn: IDC estimates Dell's Q3 2026 PC shipments fell 25.0% year on year in a market down 20.1%, with component cost inflation pushing up prices.
• Memory cost inflation: The latest 10-Q cites substantial inflation in memory component costs and supply constraints, a direct pressure on hardware gross margins (20.9% in Q2 FY2027).
• Insider and sponsor selling: Silver Lake funds sold about 8.3m Class C shares for roughly $2.9bn between March and October 2026, and several executives sold after the share price rally.
• Export-control headlines: A 13 Nov 2026 report that Dell servers containing restricted NVIDIA chips ended up in a Shanghai data centre shows the compliance exposure attached to AI hardware sales.

3. Segments & Revenue Mix

FY2026 revenue by segment and product line, as a share of total revenue of $113,538m. About $1.7bn (1.5%) came from other businesses outside ISG and CSG.

The mix has shifted sharply in FY2027. In Q2 FY2027, ISG generated $31,782m (67.7% of revenue, +89% YoY), of which AI servers were $16,401m, traditional servers and networking $10,531m and storage $4,850m. CSG generated $15,034m (+20%), split into commercial $13,192m and consumer $1,842m.

4. Business Model & Moat

How it makes money. Dell earns a hardware margin on each server, storage array and PC it builds, plus attached services, support contracts and financing through Dell Financial Services. Gross margin was 20.9% in Q2 FY2027, lower than in past years because AI servers carry thinner margins than storage and traditional servers, but operating income is growing faster as volumes scale: GAAP operating income was $5,385m in Q2 FY2027, against $1,773m a year earlier.

Scale and supply chain. Dell is the largest branded server vendor and the third-largest PC maker by units. That scale gives it purchasing power with NVIDIA, memory suppliers and contract manufacturers, and the logistics to build, test and deliver fully liquid-cooled AI racks to customer data centres at short notice.

Customer relationships. Decades of enterprise and government relationships, a direct sales force and a global services organisation let Dell cross-sell servers, storage, PCs and services into the same accounts. The Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA programme had more than 5,000 customers by mid-2026.

Capital allocation. Dell targets returning most of its adjusted free cash flow to shareholders through buybacks and a growing dividend, while issuing debt to fund working capital for AI deals; it raised $5.0bn of senior notes on 15 Sep 2026.

5. Financial Health

Annual figures from Dell's 10-K filings, SEC XBRL data and Q4 earnings releases. Fiscal years end in late January or early February.

† FY2022 GAAP EPS is from continuing operations (VMware was spun off in Nov 2021); FY2022 revenue growth is measured against FY2021 continuing-operations revenue of $86,670m. The dividend policy began on 24 Feb 2022, in FY2023. ‡ FY2024 EPS is shown as revised in later filings to correct supplier credits (originally reported GAAP $4.36, non-GAAP $7.13). Adjusted EPS is Dell's non-GAAP diluted EPS. Long-term debt excludes the current portion ($7,990m at 30 Jan 2026).

Quarterly results, most recent first.

Q1 FY2027 GAAP EPS exceeded non-GAAP EPS because of fair-value gains on strategic equity investments, which are excluded from the non-GAAP measure. Q3 FY2027 guidance: revenue ~$49.0bn, GAAP EPS $6.10, non-GAAP EPS $6.50.

Cash flow and balance sheet. FY2026 operating cash flow was $11,185m, capital expenditure (purchases of property, equipment and capitalised software) $2,633m, and depreciation and amortisation $3,029m. In the first half of FY2027, operating cash flow was $6,306m, capex $2,202m and D&A $1,512m; Q2 alone produced operating cash flow of $2,225m and free cash flow of $986m, which Dell's "adjusted free cash flow" measure lifts to $8,149m by adding back $6,667m of growth in financing receivables. At 31 Jul 2026 total debt was $34,466m ($25,985m long-term plus $8,481m short-term), cash and cash equivalents were $11,569m, and total stockholders' equity was negative at -$1,427m. Dell added $5.0bn of senior notes on 15 Sep 2026, after the quarter end.

6. Valuation Snapshot

Raw metrics, November 2026. Not opinions on whether the stock is cheap or expensive.

7. What Are They Building

• Next-generation AI racks: The PowerEdge XE8812, built on NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL4, is fully liquid-cooled and supports up to 144 GPUs per PowerRack 9100; Dell said in June 2026 it would be available early next year.
• Dell AI Factory with NVIDIA: Updates announced at GTC Berlin on 21 Oct 2026, including Dell Managed Services for AI, due to be available in Q1 of calendar 2027.
• AI Data Platform: Expanded on 06 Oct 2026 with a semantic layer and knowledge graph designed to give AI agents trusted enterprise data.
• AI PCs and workstations: New Windows AI PCs launched 07 Oct 2026, including the XPS 16 Creator Edition, and Pro Precision deskside systems with NVIDIA GB10 chips.
• Cyber resilience: PowerProtect and security updates launched 27 Oct 2026, and a CrowdStrike integration bringing AI security to the Dell AI Factory announced 02 Nov 2026.

8. Competitive Landscape

In PCs, IDC put Dell third in Q3 2026 with 7.6m units and a 12.1% share, behind Lenovo (23.8%) and HP (16.5%); Gartner put Dell's share at 13.7%. In servers, IDC ranked Dell first among branded vendors in Q2 2026 with a 13.4% share of a $166.3bn market, ahead of Supermicro (6.1%), Lenovo (5.1%) and HPE (3.5%); original design manufacturers selling direct to hyperscalers take a large share of the rest.

9. Insider Activity

CEO Michael Dell filed no Form 4 sales in 2026 through late October. The largest seller has been Silver Lake, Dell's long-time private equity partner, whose co-founder Egon Durban sits on the board. No open-market insider purchases were found. Values are calculated from weighted-average prices on SEC Form 4 filings.

Source: SEC Form 4 filings for CIK 1571996. Silver Lake also made in-kind distributions to its fund investors on 19 Mar and 15 Oct 2026, and converted Class B shares to Class C.

10. Key Risks

• Component cost inflation: Dell's 10-Q cites substantial inflation in memory costs and supply constraints; if it cannot pass these on, hardware margins and PC demand both suffer.
• AI revenue timing and margins: Management describes inherent non-linearity in AI server shipments, which depend on GPU supply, customer data-centre readiness and a small number of very large orders, at lower gross margins than the rest of ISG.
• Working capital and leverage: Total debt of about $34.5bn at 31 Jul 2026, plus $5.0bn issued in September, negative stockholders' equity and weak reported free cash flow leave Dell reliant on customer financing and debt markets to fund AI growth.
• Controlled company and selling overhang: Michael Dell and Silver Lake control about 91.7% of the vote, limiting minority shareholder influence, and further Silver Lake sales could add supply. The new Texas bylaws also raise the bar for shareholder proposals.
• Trade, tariffs and export controls: Dell relies on contract manufacturers in Asia and sells AI hardware subject to US export rules; the 13 Nov 2026 diversion report shows the regulatory and reputational risk.
• PC cycle: CSG is still about 45% of FY2026 revenue, and industry PC shipments fell more than 20% year on year in Q3 2026.
• Key person dependence: The 10-Q names dependence on Michael Dell as a risk factor.

11. Recent Developments

• 13 Nov 2026 — Export-control report hits shares. The stock fell about 7% after a Bloomberg report that 22 Dell servers with restricted NVIDIA H800 chips, sold to Singapore-based Aperia, ended up in a Shanghai data centre; Dell said it stopped selling to Aperia in Feb 2025.
• 11 Nov 2026 — Shares rebound. The stock rose 11.75% to $373.68 after CoreWeave's results eased concerns about AI infrastructure spending, following a drop of about 45% from the 07 Oct 2026 peak.
• 10 Nov 2026 — Results date set. Dell said it will report Q3 FY2027 results on 24 Nov 2026.
• 02 Nov 2026 — CrowdStrike integration. CrowdStrike announced integrated AI security for the Dell AI Factory.
• 21 Oct 2026 — AI Factory updates and legal succession. Dell expanded its AI Factory with NVIDIA at GTC Berlin and filed an 8-K naming Christopher Garcia to succeed retiring General Counsel Richard Rothberg from 01 Feb 2027.
• 08 Oct 2026 — PC shipments slump. IDC estimated Q3 2026 PC shipments fell 20.1% industry-wide and 25.0% for Dell, as component cost inflation raised prices.
• 07 Oct 2026 — New AI PCs. Dell launched new Windows AI PCs and workstations, including the XPS 16 Creator Edition.

12. Key Dates

• 24 Nov 2026 — Q3 FY2027 results and conference call (3:30pm CST); guidance is revenue ~$49.0bn and non-GAAP EPS $6.50.
• Expected Jan 2027 — Next quarterly dividend ex-date and payment; dates to be confirmed with the Q3 release (last year's January dividend went ex on 20 Jan 2026).
• 29 Jan 2027 — End of fiscal year 2027.
• 01 Feb 2027 — Christopher Garcia takes over as General Counsel.
• Expected Feb 2027 — Q4 and full-year FY2027 results with FY2028 guidance; date not yet announced.
• Expected Q1 2027 — General availability of Dell Managed Services for AI and Vera Rubin-based PowerEdge XE8812 systems.

Dell has not announced an investor or analyst day.

Disclaimer: This research is produced by ChartsView for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. All information is sourced from publicly available company filings, press releases, and official data. ChartsView does not use analyst opinions or third-party ratings. Always conduct your own due diligence and consider your personal financial situation before making investment decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.