Michael Dell, founder of Dell Technologies, has shared his company’s quarterly report from July 31, 1984, saying the document changed his life. Dell said those early financial figures persuaded his parents to support his decision not to return to college.
At the time, Dell was running a business called PC’s Limited, which he had founded in a dormitory at the University of Texas at Austin. The company assembled and upgraded computers from standard components.
The report showed that in a single quarter the business sold nearly one million dollars worth of components and computers, with net profit reaching $134,762.75. Dell was 19 years old at the time and had started the venture with around $1,000.
The company went public four years after its founding. In 2013, Dell and investment firm Silver Lake Partners took it private in a deal valued at $24.9 billion. It later returned to public markets and is now valued at approximately $261.9 billion.
