IBM chief confident despite poor profits

IBM chief executive Ginni Rometty, facing more sceptical investors after the company missed quarterly earnings estimates for the first time in eight years, said she remained confident about reaching long-term profit goals.

Speaking at the company's annual meeting on Tuesday, Rometty said she was "not satisfied" with the first-quarter results.

To shape up, IBM is divesting businesses and focusing on more profitable and faster-growing areas, such as data analysis and cloud computing.

The company was still on track to meet its five-year plan for profit growth, put in place under her predecessor Sam Palmisano in 2010, Rometty said.

"It is important to understand IBM's long-term model," said Rometty, who became chief executive of the computer-services giant in January last year. "We are an innovation company. This means that we pursue continuous transformation."

IBM, famous for methodically setting and then meeting its goals, jarred shareholders on April 18 when it posted first-quarter profit of US$3 a share, missing the US$3.05 predicted by analysts. It was the first earnings shortfall since 2005. The shares tumbled almost 10 per cent over the following two trading days.