HP BEAT: Hewlett-Packard Co. reported first-quarter earnings through January that beat Wall Street expectations, mainly on the surprising strength of personal computer sales to businesses.

XP UPGRADE BOOST: CEO Meg Whitman said that a one-time benefit from companies upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7 was “important, but not overwhelming.” She said companies were also getting around to replacing older machines, but it was too soon to say the PC market would grow.

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THE NUMBERS: Adjusted earnings came to 90 cents per share, topping the 85 cents expected by analysts. Revenue dipped 1 percent to $28.15 billion, above the $27.20 billion expected by analysts.