Analysts Predict Loss for IBM in 3rd Quarter

International Business Machines Corp. is expected to report a third-quarter loss this week, as sluggishness in its mainframe business continues and sales in Europe remain dismal, analysts said.

The range among Wall Street analysts for IBM is break-even to a loss of 35 cents a share, and a mean of 20 cents lost per share, according to First Call, which compiles brokerage estimates. IBM is due to report its results Tuesday.

Business in Europe, where IBM gets about 40% of sales, has been particularly troublesome for the computer giant, analysts said.

“Europe is going to be tough,” said Curt Rohrman of First Boston. “Every indication from everyone else is that Europe is going to be much worse than what people have in their numbers.”

Stephen Smith, a Paine Webber Inc. analyst, noted that last week, Digital Equipment Corp. reported a bigger-than-expected first-quarter loss. It said its revenue decline was due in part to continued weakness in Europe.