Dell and HPE Stocks Soared After Last Earnings. Forget the Guidance Raise. This Is What Matters Most This Time.

Dell Technologies (DELL) and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) report within a day of each other this week. Dell goes first on Sept. 1, followed by HPE on Sept. 2. J.P. Morgan expects both to lift guidance again, helped by strong AI server demand and steady demand for ordinary, non-AI gear. Analysts estimate revenue of $44.5 billion and adjusted EPS of $4.92 for Dell and revenue of $11.94 billion and adjusted EPS of $0.93 for HPE. Both stocks rose sharply after their last reports, and the market is expecting more good news again. That is why I think the headline beat matters less this time around.

Dell has already set the bar high. During its last quarterly release, it lifted the full-year revenue outlook from $140 billion to $167 billion and nearly doubled its GAAP EPS guidance to a $17.31 midpoint. Its AI backlog sits at $51 billion, with AI revenue guided to $60 billion for the year. Another raise is widely expected, and the stock is priced for it. HPE is coming off with similar momentum. In June, it posted record revenue and margins, raised its full-year outlook, and pulled its fiscal 2028 profit target forward by two full years. A lot of that comes from Juniper. HPE’s networking carries far richer margins than servers do. So Dell is the bigger growth story, while HPE is quietly building the better-quality one.