Whitehurst has landed

RDU Jetblast

Veteran
Aug 20, 2002
818
91
North Carolina
From the Raleigh News & Observer.-just a couple paragraphs.



By MIKE BAKER, AP Business Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. - Red Hat Inc. tapped former Delta Air Lines Inc. executive James Whitehurst to lead the company into a new phase of growth, as the open source provider said Thursday its third-quarter earnings rose 12 percent.

Company officials said Whitehurst's experience at Delta, including his work leading the development of the online travel site Orbitz, will help him carry Red Hat to $1 billion in revenue and beyond. He was at Delta for five years, where he worked to bring the airline out of bankruptcy.

Long-standing Red Hat CEO Matthew Szulik, explaining in a conference call he needs more time to tend to "serious health issues" in his family, will continue to serve as chairman of the company's board of directors.

Red Hat said its net income in the quarter that ended Nov. 30 climbed to $20.3 million, or 10 cents per share, compared with $14.6 million, or 7 cents per share, in the year-ago period. A surge in subscriptions in the latest quarter helped offset increased spending on marketing and research.

Revenue rose 28 percent to $135.4 million.

Analysts expected the Raleigh-based company to post earnings of 10 cents per share on revenue of $132.4 million, according to a Thomson Financial survey.F