Lexmark results hit by failed Oracle project

It may have snagged one major deal recently but as for CRM...

Lexmark is taking a $15.8m charge to write off an abandoned software project, the company said yesterday. The project involved an Oracle customer relationship management (CRM) implementation, a Lexmark spokesman said. He said the company could not give any more information about why it was abandoned, until the company formally reports third quarter results on 21 October.
Oracle officials did not immediately return calls for comment. Despite the charge, the printer maker expects to report a 4 per cent to 5 per cent jump in Q3 revenue compared with a year ago. The charge will knock 9 cents a share off of Lexmark's bottom line but the company still expects to post earnings of 68 cents to 70 cents per share, up from 52 cents per share a year ago. The company had earlier predicted earnings of 58 cents to 68 cents per share. Last month, Lexmark signed a deal with Dell Computer to create Dell-branded inkjet and laser printers, and printer supplies that will be sold directly to consumers. Dell also plans to make Lexmark its preferred printer supplier for the holiday-shopping season, ahead of competitor HP. Margaret Kane writes for CNET News.com.