IBM Corporation In the seven years (since 1994), that Lou Gerstner has reigned over IBM, the companys earnings per share have increased an average of 27% per year. This remarkable increase in earnings has not gone unnoticed by the securities markets. Indeed, the companys market value has grown from less than $30 billion to over $200 billion during this period. 2. Evaluate IBMs Revenue growth, Receivables, and Gross margins and over the period (be sure to control for seasonality in your evaluation e.g., you can address the change in sales by calculating: (Sales in quarter t Sales in quarter t of the prior year) / Sales in quarter t of the prior year. This would give you thee % change in sales from one year to the next for a particular quarter.