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UNITED STATES

Form 10-K

ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

For the Fiscal Year Ended February 1, 2002

Commission file number: 0-17017

Dell Computer Corporation

807 Las Cimas Parkway, Building 2, Austin, Texas 78746

(512) 338-4400

Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

Common Stock, par value $.01 per share

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.     Yes x     No o

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.     o

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

The information required by Part III of this Report, to the extent not set forth herein, is incorporated by reference from the Registrant’s definitive proxy statement relating to the annual meeting of stockholders to be held in July 2002, which definitive proxy statement will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year to which this Report relates.

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This Annual report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements that are based on the Company’s current expectations. Actual results in future periods may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements because of a number of risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of factors affecting the Company’s business and prospects, see “Item 1 — Business — Factors Affecting the Company’s Business and Prospects.”

PART I

ITEM 1 — BUSINESS

General

Dell Computer Corporation (the “Company”) is the world’s leading computer systems company and a premier provider of computing products and services. In fiscal year 2002 the Company’s revenue was $31.2 billion. The Company was founded in 1984 by Michael Dell on a simple concept: by selling computer systems directly to customers, the Company could best understand customer needs and efficiently provide the most effective computing solutions to meet those needs. The Company’s climb to market leadership is the result of a relentless focus on delivering the best customer experience by selling computer systems and services directly to its customers.

The Company enhances the customer experience by continually striving to introduce efficiencies to its entire business and by rapidly passing those efficiencies on to its customers. The Company’s direct model and its efficient procurement, manufacturing and distribution processes allow the Company to rapidly pass cost-savings directly to its customers.

The Company’s direct model allows the Company to design and customize products and services to meet the specific requirements of its customers. The Dell^TM line of high-performance computer systems includes PowerEdge^TM servers, PowerApp^TM server appliances, PowerVault^TM storage products, PowerConnect^TM networking products, Dell Precision^TM workstations, Latitude^TM and Inspiron^TM notebook computers, and OptiPlex^TM, Dimension^TM and SmartStep^TM desktop computers. The Company also markets and sells Dell/EMC storage products under a long-term strategic relationship with EMC Corporation announced in the third quarter of fiscal 2002. The Company provides targeted services for consulting, deployment and support, as well as an extensive selection of peripheral hardware, including handheld products, and computing software. The Company sells its products and services to a full range of customers, including global enterprises and other large corporations; federal, state and local governments; educational and healthcare institutions; small-to-medium businesses; and consumers.

The Company is a Delaware corporation that was incorporated in October 1987, succeeding to the business of a predecessor Texas corporation that was originally incorporated in May 1984. Based in Austin, Texas, the Company conducts operations worldwide through wholly owned subsidiaries. See “Item 1 — Business — Geographic Areas of Operations.” Unless otherwise specified, references herein to the Company are references to the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries. The Company operates principally in one industry segment.

The Company’s common stock, par value $.01 per share, is listed on The Nasdaq National Market under the symbol DELL. See “Item 5 — Market for Registrant’s Common Equity and Related Stockholder Matters — Market Information.”

Business Strategy

The Company’s business strategy is based upon the direct model. The direct model seeks to deliver a superior customer experience through direct, comprehensive customer relationships, cooperative research and development with technology partners, use of the Internet, computer systems custom-built to customer specifications, and service and support programs tailored to specific customer needs.

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The Company believes that the direct model provides it with several distinct competitive advantages. The direct model eliminates the need to support an extensive network of wholesale and retail dealers, thereby avoiding dealer mark-ups; avoids the higher inventory costs associated with the wholesale/retail channel and the competition for retail shelf space; and reduces the high risk of obsolescence associated with products in a rapidly changing technological market. In addition, the direct model allows the Company to maintain, monitor and update a customer database that can be used to shape future product offerings and post-sale service and support programs. This direct approach allows the Company to rapidly and efficiently deliver relevant technology to its customers.

The Company believes that it has significant opportunities for continued growth. While the Company believes that its business strategy provides it with competitive advantages, there are many factors that may affect the Company’s business and the success of its operations. For a discussion of these factors, see “Item 1 — Business — Factors Affecting the Company’s Business and Prospects.”

The Company utilizes its direct customer relationships to understand its customers’ needs and to deliver high quality computer products and services tailored to meet those needs. For large corporate and institutional customers, the Company works with the customer prior to the sale to plan a strategy to meet that customer’s technology needs. After the sale, the Company continues the direct relationship by establishing account teams, consisting of sales, customer service and technical personnel, dedicated to the Company’s large corporate and institutional customers. The Company also establishes direct relationships with small-to-medium businesses and individuals through account representatives, telephone sales representatives or Internet contact. These direct customer relationships provide the Company with a constant flow of information about its customers’ plans and requirements and enable the Company to weigh its customers’ needs against emerging technologies.

The Company has successfully developed cooperative, working relationships with many of the world’s most advanced technology companies. Working with these companies, the Company’s engineers manage quality, integrate technologies and design and manage system architecture. This cooperative approach allows the Company to determine the best method and timing for delivering new technologies to the market. The Company’s goal is to quickly and efficiently deliver the latest relevant technology to its customers.

The direct model is based on the principle that delivering custom-built computer systems is the most effective business model for providing solutions that are truly relevant to customer needs. This concept, together with the Company’s flexible, build-to-order manufacturing process, enables the Company to achieve faster inventory turnover and reduced inventory levels and allows the Company to rapidly incorporate new technologies and components into its product offerings.

The Company leverages its direct customer relationships by continually striving to make it easier for customers to choose, purchase and support their computing environments. The Company enhances and broadens the fundamental competitive advantage of its direct model by continuing to apply the efficiencies of the Internet to its entire business. Approximately half of the Company’s technical support activities occur online and approximately three-quarters of the Company’s order-status transactions occur online.

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In the same way that the Company’s computer products are built-to-order, services and support programs are designed to fit specific customer requirements. The Company offers a broad range of services and support programs, including online support, onsite customer-dedicated systems engineers, and leasing and asset management services.

Geographic Areas of Operations

The Company conducts operations worldwide and is managed generally on a geographic basis. The three geographic regions are the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific and Japan regions. The Americas region is based in Round Rock, Texas, and covers the U.S., Canada, South America and Latin America. The Americas region is further segmented into Business and U.S. Consumer. The Europe region, which is based in Bracknell, England, covers the European countries and also some countries in the Middle East and Africa. The Asia-Pacific and Japan region covers the Pacific Rim, including Japan, India, China, Australia and New Zealand, and is based in Singapore. See “Item 1 — Business — Factors Affecting the Company’s Business and Prospects — International Activities” for information about certain risks of international activities.

The Company’s corporate headquarters are located in Austin, Texas. Its manufacturing facilities are located in or around Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; Eldorado do Sul, Brazil; Limerick, Ireland; Penang, Malaysia; and Xiamen, China. See “Item 2 — Properties.”

For financial information about the results of the Company’s operating segments for each of the last three fiscal years, see Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in “Item 8 — Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

Products

The Company’s primary product offerings include enterprise systems, notebook computers and desktop computer systems. Enterprise systems include PowerEdge servers; PowerApp server appliances; PowerVault storage products; PowerConnect network switches; and Dell Precision desktop and mobile workstations. The Company also markets and sells Dell/EMC storage products under a long-term strategic relationship with EMC Corporation. The Company offers Latitude and Inspiron notebook computers and Dimension, OptiPlex and SmartStep desktop computer systems.

Servers — The Company offers two lines of server products. The PowerEdge line of servers consists of systems that can operate as file servers, database servers, applications servers and communications/groupware servers in a networked computing environment. The PowerEdge SC family of servers is designed for high-growth small business and small corporate local area network and branch office environments. The PowerApp line of appliance servers are specialized servers that target customers with network traffic management needs and other companies that are developing or enhancing their Internet infrastructures. According to International Data Corporation (“IDC”), during calendar year 2001, the Company ranked number one in the United States and number two worldwide for server shipments.

Storage — The Company’s PowerVault storage offerings are designed to standardize and simplify storage solutions for customers who need complete, affordable storage systems without sacrificing enterprise capabilities. The Company offers a comprehensive portfolio of hardware, software and services for server-attached storage, storage area networks (SAN), and network-attached storage (NAS), targeted at small businesses, as well as workgroups and data centers within enterprises. The Company’s products include SCSI and fibre-channel based storage systems, tape backup systems, SAN and NAS appliances, as well as complimentary storage management software to simplify administration and minimize related costs.

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In the third quarter of fiscal year 2002, the Company and EMC announced a long-term strategic alliance. Pursuant to this strategic alliance, the Company and EMC co-brand EMC’s CLARiiON line of enterprise storage systems and Dell resells the CLARiiON product family, including all CLARiiON software and switching products.

Network Switches — The Company introduced the PowerConnect line of network switches during the third quarter of fiscal year 2002. The PowerConnect line is targeted at small and medium businesses to allow those customers to, among other things, efficiently connect client workgroups to servers or to establish local area networks in branch offices.

Workstations — The Company offers the Dell Precision desktop workstation and, in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2002, introduced the Dell Precision mobile workstation. These products are intended for professional users who demand exceptional performance to run sophisticated applications, such as computer-aided design, digital content creation, geographic information systems, computer animation, software development and financial analysis. According to IDC, in calendar year 2001, Dell held the number one position in worldwide branded workstation unit shipments.

The Company offers two lines of notebook computer systems. The Latitude line provides large corporate, government and education customers with reliability, stability and superior battery performance for complex networked environments. The Inspiron line is targeted to home and small business users who require the latest technology and high-end multimedia performance. According to IDC, the Company ranked number one worldwide and in the U.S. in notebook computer shipments in calendar year 2001.

The Company offers three lines of desktop computer systems. The OptiPlex desktop computer is designed for corporate and institutional customers who require highly reliable systems within networked environments. Dimension desktop computer is designed for customers who require powerful standalone and peer-to-peer desktop solutions. Dimension customers include corporate and institution customers as well as small businesses and home users. The SmartStep desktop computer, introduced in the third quarter of fiscal year 2002, is designed for first-time Dell computer buyers or for customers who are purchasing a second desktop computer for their home or small business. According to IDC, the Company ranked number one in worldwide and U.S. desktop shipments in calendar year 2001.

The Company maintains a variety of software and accessory programs to complement its systems offerings. The Company’s custom factory integration program provides factory-installed off-the-shelf software, installation and configuration of custom hardware and software, asset tagging and labeling. Through www.dell.com, the Company offers over 55,000 competitively priced software and peripheral products from leading manufacturers, making Dell a single source solution for customers. Products offered on www.dell.com include handheld products, memory upgrades, printers, monitors, digital cameras, scanners, software and networking products.

Services

The Company enhances its product offerings with a number of specialized services, including professional consulting services, custom hardware and software integration, leasing and asset management, network installation and support and onsite service.

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Through Dell Technology Consulting^TM, the Company offers a comprehensive portfolio of enterprise-level professional consulting services. The Company’s offerings include the design and implementation of complex storage systems, enterprise hardware training, tuning and proof-of-concept services. The Company also tailors systems to specific customer requirements by integrating custom-configured hardware and software into the Company’s manufacturing process, coordinating delivery and managing all aspects of an on-site installation, including engineer-to-engineer support, technical account management, and single-point-of-accountability support for issue resolution of leading enterprise software applications.

The Company offers warranty and technical support for all of its products. The specific terms and conditions of these warranties and service and support options vary depending upon the product sold and country in which the Company does business. For products sold in the United States, the Company provides a basic limited warranty, including parts and labor, for all computer systems for a period ranging from one to three years. The Company offers additional warranties based upon the particular product offered and customer needs. The Company also provides 24-hour telephone-based technical support and a wide array of Internet support. In addition, customers can choose from a variety of customized services and support programs. For example, through the Premier Enterprise Support program, the Company offers a tiered service offering to help satisfy the unique needs of server and storage customers across a range of computing environments. Premier Enterprise Support offers four tiers of service, each of which is designed to meet the varied needs of the Company’s enterprise customers.

The Company offers specialized custom factory integration services designed to address specific hardware and software integration requirements of customers. These services allow the Company to satisfy a customer’s particular integration requirements (whether hardware related, such as specialized network cards, video and graphic boards, modems, tape drives or hard drives; or software related, such as customer proprietary software applications or drivers) at the time the customer’s systems are manufactured. Additionally, through the Company’s ReadyWare program, the Company can factory install a collection of popular off-the-shelf software applications and interface cards.

The Company offers computer system leasing, as well as a variety of other customer financing programs, for its business and consumer customers in the United States through Dell Financial Services L.P. (“DFS”), a joint venture between the Company and Tyco International. In fiscal year 2002, DFS originated financing arrangements for the Company’s customers totaling $2.7 billion. For government and international customers, the Company also partners with a variety of third-party financing companies to offer leasing services to these customer segments. For additional information about DFS, see Note 8 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in “Item 8 — Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

Sales and Marketing

The Company’s customers range from large corporations, government agencies and healthcare and educational institutions to small-to-medium businesses and individuals. In general, the Company uses similar sales and marketing approaches across all customer groups, as demand levels for each customer group are principally driven by similar changes in market prices and overall general economic conditions. Within each region, the Company has divided its sales and marketing forces

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The Company has established a broad range of customers based on continuing relationships with large corporations, governmental, healthcare and educational institutions and small-to-medium businesses. The Company maintains a field sales force throughout the world to call on business and institutional customers. The Company develops marketing programs and services specifically geared to meet the needs of these relationship customers. Dedicated account teams, which include field-based system engineers and consultants, form long-term customer relationships to provide each customer with a single source of assistance and to develop specific marketing programs for these customers.

For multinational corporate customers, the Company offers several programs designed to provide global capability, support and coordination. Through these programs, the Company can provide single points of contact and accountability with global account specialists, special global pricing, consistent service and support programs across global regions and access to central purchasing facilities.

The Company also maintains specific sales and marketing programs targeted at federal, state and local governmental agencies. The Company maintains account teams dedicated to specific governmental and educational markets.

The Company has established a significant base of business among small-to-medium businesses and individual customers. The Company markets its products and services to these customers by advertising on the Internet and television, in trade and general business publications and by mailing a broad range of direct marketing publications, such as promotional pieces, catalogs and customer newsletters. The Company believes these customers value its ability to provide reliable, custom-built computer systems at competitive prices, while offering knowledgeable sales assistance, post-sale support and a variety of service offerings.

Manufacturing

The Company operates manufacturing facilities in and around Austin, Texas; Eldorado do Sul, Brazil; Nashville, Tennessee; Limerick, Ireland; Penang, Malaysia; and Xiamen, China. The Company’s manufacturing process consists of assembly, functional testing and quality control of the Company’s computer systems. Testing and quality control processes are also applied to components, parts and subassemblies obtained from suppliers. The Company’s build-to-order manufacturing process is designed to allow the Company to quickly produce customized computer systems and to achieve rapid inventory turnover and reduced inventory levels, which lessens the Company’s exposure to the risk of declining inventory values. This flexible manufacturing process also allows the Company to quickly incorporate new technologies or components into its product offerings.

Quality control is maintained through the testing of components, parts and subassemblies at various stages in the manufacturing process. Quality control also includes a burn-in period for completed units after assembly, on-going production reliability audits, failure tracking for early identification of production and component problems and information from the Company’s customers obtained through service and support programs. The Company conducts a voluntary vendor certification program, under which qualified vendors commit to meet defined quality specifications. All of the Company’s manufacturing facilities have been certified as meeting ISO 9002 quality standards.

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Product Development

The Company’s product development efforts are focused on designing and developing competitively priced computer systems that adhere to industry standards and incorporate the technologies and features that the Company believes are most desired by its customers. To accomplish this objective, the Company must evaluate, obtain and incorporate new hardware, software, storage, communications and peripherals technologies that are primarily developed by others. The Company’s product development team includes programmers, technical project managers and engineers experienced in system architecture, logic board design, sub-system development, mechanical engineering, manufacturing processing and operating systems. This cross-functional approach to product design has enabled the Company to develop systems with improved functionality, manufacturability, reliability, serviceability and performance, while keeping costs competitive. The Company takes steps to ensure that new products are compatible with industry standards and that they meet cost objectives based on competitive pricing targets.

The Company bases its product development efforts on cooperative, meaningful relationships with the world’s most advanced technology companies. These working partnerships allow the Company to use its direct model and build-to-order manufacturing process to deliver, on a timely and cost-effective basis, those emerging technologies that are most relevant to its customers.

During fiscal year 2002, the Company incurred $452 million in research, development and engineering expenses, compared with $482 million for fiscal year 2001 and $374 million for fiscal year 2000 (excluding $194 million of acquired in-process research and development). The amount the Company spends on research, development and engineering activities, which the Company believes to be important to its continued success and growth, is determined as part of the annual budget process and is based on cost-benefit analyses and revenue forecasts. The Company prioritizes activities to focus on projects that it believes will have the greatest market acceptance and achieve the highest return on the Company’s investment.

Patents, Trademarks and Licenses

The Company holds a portfolio of approximately 730 U.S. patents and approximately 535 U.S. patent applications pending, and has a number of related foreign patents and patent applications pending. The Company’s U.S. patents expire in years 2003 through 2020. The inventions claimed in those patents and patent applications cover aspects of the Company’s current and possible future computer system products, manufacturing processes and related technologies. The Company is developing a portfolio of patents that it anticipates will be of value in negotiating intellectual property rights with others in the industry.

The Company has obtained U.S. federal trademark registration for its DELL word mark and its Dell logo mark. The Company owns registrations for 42 of its other marks in the U.S. As of February 8, 2002, the Company had pending applications for registration of 50 other trademarks. The DELL word mark, Dell logo and other trademark and service mark registrations in the U.S. may be renewed as long as the mark continues to be used in interstate commerce. The Company believes that establishment of the DELL mark and logo in the U.S. is material to the Company’s operations. The Company has also applied for or obtained registration of the DELL mark and several other marks in approximately 176 other countries or jurisdictions where the Company conducts or anticipates expanding its international business. The Company has also registered approximately 1000 global domain names. In addition, the Company has registered approximately 400 country-specific domain names. The Company has also taken steps to reserve corporate names and to form non-operating subsidiaries in certain foreign countries where the Company anticipates expanding its international business.

The Company has entered into a variety of intellectual property licensing and cross-licensing agreements. In addition, the Company has entered into nonexclusive licensing agreements with

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From time to time, other companies and individuals assert exclusive patent, copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights to technologies or marks that are important to the technology industry or the Company’s business. The Company evaluates each claim relating to its products and, if appropriate, seeks a license to use the protected technology. The licensing agreements generally do not require the licensor to assist the Company in duplicating its patented technology nor do these agreements protect the Company from trade secret, copyright or other violations by the Company or its suppliers in developing or selling these products. See “Item 1 — Business — Factors Affecting the Company’s Business and Prospects — Patent Rights” for information about intellectual property risks.

Infrastructure

The Company’s management information systems enable the Company to track each unit sold from the initial sales contact, through the manufacturing process to post-sale service and support. The systems assist the Company in tracking key information about customer needs. Using its database to assess customer trends, the Company targets marketing activities specifically to particular types of customers. This database, unique to the Company’s direct model, allows the Company to gauge customer satisfaction issues and also provides the opportunity to test new propositions in the marketplace prior to product or service introductions.

On February 1, 2002, the Company had approximately 34,600 regular employees. Approximately 20,200 of those employees were located in the U.S., and approximately 14,400 were located in other countries. The Company believes that its ability to attract and retain qualified personnel is critical to its success and achievement of its business plan. The Company has never experienced a work stoppage due to labor difficulties and believes that its employee relations are good.

Government Regulation

The Company’s business is subject to regulation by various federal and state governmental agencies. Such regulation includes the radio frequency emission regulatory activities of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, the anti-trust regulatory activities of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice, the import/export regulatory activities of the U.S. Department of Commerce and the product safety regulatory activities of the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission.

The Company also is required to obtain regulatory approvals in other countries prior to the sale or shipment of products. In certain jurisdictions, such requirements are more stringent than in the U.S. Many developing nations are just beginning to establish safety, environmental and other regulatory requirements, which may vary greatly from U.S. requirements.

Backlog

The Company does not believe that backlog is a meaningful indicator of sales that can be expected for any period, and there can be no assurance that the backlog at any point in time will translate into sales in any subsequent period, as unfilled orders can generally be canceled at will by the customer. At the end of fiscal year 2002, 2001, and 2000, backlog was not material.

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Factors Affecting the Company’s Business and Prospects

There are many factors that affect the Company’s business and the results of its operations, some of which are beyond the control of the Company. The following is a description of some of the important factors that may cause the actual results of the Company’s operations in future periods to differ materially from those currently expected or desired.

Any general economic, business or industry conditions that cause customers or potential customers to reduce or delay their investments in computer systems could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, prospects and financial performance. During fiscal 2002, worldwide economic conditions negatively affected demand for the Company’s products and resulted in declining revenue and earnings for the Company compared to fiscal 2001. The Company believes that worldwide economic conditions will improve. However, if such improvements do not occur and economic conditions continue to worsen, or if economic conditions do not improve as rapidly as expected, the Company’s revenue and earnings could be negatively affected.

The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States created immediate significant economic and political uncertainty. The long-term effects of such attacks on the Company’s business are unknown, but could be material to the Company. Further terrorists acts or acts of war, whether in the United States or abroad, could cause damage or disruption to the Company, its suppliers, distributors or customers, or could create political or economic instability, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business.

The Company encounters aggressive competition from numerous companies in all aspects of its business. The Company competes on the basis of price, technology availability, performance, quality, reliability, service and support. The Company believes that its cost structure and business model creates a competitive advantage over its competitors. However, the Company cannot provide any assurance that it will be able to maintain this advantage if its competitors alter their cost structure or business model, or take other actions that affect the Company’s current competitive advantage.

Sales outside the United States accounted for approximately 35% of the Company’s revenues in fiscal year 2002. The Company’s future growth rates and success are dependent on continued growth and success in international markets. As is the case with most international operations, the success and profitability of the Company’s international operations are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including local economic and labor conditions, political instability, unexpected changes in the regulatory environment, trade protection measures, tax laws (including U.S. taxes on foreign operations) and foreign currency exchange rates.

The profit margins realized by the Company vary somewhat among its products, customers and geographic markets. Consequently, the overall profitability of the Company’s operations in any given period is partially dependent on the product, customer and geographic mix reflected in that period’s revenues.

The Company experiences some seasonal trends in the sale of its products. For example, sales to governments (particularly U.S. federal sales) are often stronger in the Company’s third quarter,

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The technology industry is characterized by continuing improvements in technology, which results in the frequent introduction of new products, short product life cycles and continual improvement in product price/performance characteristics. While the Company believes that its direct model and asset management practices afford it an inherent competitive advantage over some of its competitors, product transitions present some of the greatest executional challenges and risks for any computer systems company. A failure on the part of the Company to effectively manage a product transition will directly affect the demand for the Company’s products and the profitability of the Company’s operations. In addition, while the Company has meaningful relationships with some of the world’s most advanced technology companies, continuing technological advancement, which is a significant driver of customer demand, is largely beyond the control of the Company.

The Company’s direct business model gives it the ability to operate with reduced levels of component and finished goods inventories. The Company’s financial success in recent periods has been due in part to its asset management practices, including its ability to achieve rapid inventory turns. However, temporary disruptions in component availability can unfavorably affect the Company’s short-term performance. Supply conditions have generally been favorable both to the Company and to the industry in recent years. However, less favorable supply conditions, as well as other factors, may require or result in increased inventory levels in the future.

The Company’s manufacturing process requires a high volume of quality components that are procured from third party suppliers. Reliance on suppliers, as well as industry supply conditions, generally involves several risks, including the possibility of defective parts (which can adversely affect the reliability and reputation of the Company’s products), a shortage of components and reduced control over delivery schedules (which can adversely affect the Company’s manufacturing efficiencies) and increases in component costs (which can adversely affect the Company’s profitability).

The Company has several single-sourced supplier relationships, either because alternative sources are not available or the relationship is advantageous due to performance, quality, support, delivery, capacity or price considerations. If these sources are unable to provide timely and reliable supply, the Company could experience manufacturing interruptions, delays or inefficiencies, adversely affecting its results of operations. Even where alternative sources of supply are available, qualification of the alternative suppliers and establishment of reliable supplies could result in delays and a possible loss of sales, which could affect operating results adversely.

The Company regularly utilizes derivative instruments to hedge its exposure to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates. In addition, the Company utilizes equity instrument contracts to execute repurchases of its common stock under its Board-authorized share repurchase program. Some of these instruments and contracts may involve elements of market and credit risk in excess of the amounts recognized in the Consolidated Financial Statements. For additional information about risk on financial instruments, see “Item 7 — Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Market Risk.”

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The Company’s continued success and profitability partly depends on its ability to continue to improve its infrastructure (particularly personnel and information systems) in order to increase operational efficiencies. There can be no assurance that the Company can continue to make sufficient improvements to maintain its competitive advantage.

The Company’s continued business success may be largely dependent on its ability to obtain licenses to intellectual property developed by others on commercially reasonable and competitive terms. If the Company or its suppliers are unable to obtain desirable technology licenses, the Company could be prohibited from marketing products, could be forced to market products without desirable features or could incur substantial costs to redesign its products, defend legal actions or pay damages.

Certain of the Company’s operations are subject to regulation pursuant to various federal, state and international laws governing the environment. The Company’s compliance with such laws has not had a material effect upon the Company’s financial position or operations. The Company does not anticipate that such laws will have a material adverse effect on the Company in the future. However, no assurance can be given that such laws, or any laws enacted in the future, will not have a material adverse effect on the Company.

The Company has made, and continues to evaluate and make, strategic equity investments in privately held technology companies. Because these companies are typically early-stage ventures with either unproven business models, products that are not yet fully developed or products that have not yet achieved market acceptance, these investments are inherently risky. Many factors outside the Company’s control determine whether or not the Company’s investments will be successful. Such factors include the ability of a company to obtain additional private equity financing, to access the public capital markets, to effect a sale or merger, or to achieve commercial success with its products or services. The Company currently anticipates that it will make minimal additional investments in fiscal 2003 and will focus on managing its current investments. Nonetheless, there can be no assurance that the Company’s existing investments or any new investments will be successful or that the Company will be able to recover its net basis in the investments.

Trademarks and Service Marks

Unless otherwise noted, trademarks appearing in this Report are trademarks of the Company. The Company disclaims proprietary interest in the marks and names of others.

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Executive Officers of the Company

The following table sets forth the name, age and position of each of the persons who were serving as executive officers of the Company as of April 30, 2002.

Michael S. Dell — Mr. Dell has been Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer since founding the Company in 1984. He serves as vice chairman of the U.S. Business Council, a member of the Executive Committee of the World Business Council, chairman of the Computer Systems Policy Project, and as a member of the U.S. President’s Committee of Advisers on Science and Technology. Mr. Dell is Chief Executive Magazine’s 2001 CEO of the Year.

Kevin B. Rollins — Mr. Rollins currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company. In this role, he is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Company. Mr. Rollins also serves as the Company’s diversity sponsor. Mr. Rollins joined the Company in April 1996 as Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy, was named Senior Vice President, General Manager — Americas in May 1996 and was named Vice Chairman in December 1997. In March 2001, Mr. Rollins’ title was changed from Vice Chairman to President and Chief Operating Officer. For 12 years prior to joining the Company, Mr. Rollins was employed by Bain & Company, an international strategy consulting firm, most recently serving as a director and partner. Mr. Rollins received a Master of Business Administration degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brigham Young University. Mr. Rollins is also a member of the National Advisory Council of Brigham Young University and a member of the CEO Forum on Education and Technology.

William J. Amelio — Mr. Amelio joined the Company in March 2001 as Senior Vice President, Relationship Group, a position he shared with Mr. Marengi, and was named Senior Vice President, Asia-Pacific/ Japan in May 2001. In this position, Mr. Amelio is responsible for the Company’s operations in all markets in the Asia-Pacific/ Japan region, including the Company’s manufacturing and customer service centers in Penang, Malaysia and Xiamen, China. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Amelio was with NCR Corp., last serving as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of NCR’s Retail and Financial Group. Prior to joining NCR, Mr. Amelio served as the President and Chief Executive Officer for Honeywell International Inc.’s transportation and power systems divisions. Preceding that, he led the turbocharging systems business at AlliedSignal Inc. before its merger with Honeywell. His career also includes 18 years with IBM in a variety of senior-management positions, including general manager of operations for IBM’s personal computer company. Mr. Amelio holds a master’s degree in Management from Stanford University and a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Lehigh University.

Paul D. Bell — Mr. Bell joined the Company in July 1996 and serves as Senior Vice President, Europe, Middle East and Africa. He is responsible for business operations in the Company’s European region, including the Company’s manufacturing facilities in Limerick, Ireland. Until May 2001, Mr. Bell served as Senior Vice President, Home and Small Business. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Bell was with Bain & Company, where he was a management consultant for six years, including two years as a consultant for the Company. Mr. Bell received a bachelor’s degree in Fine

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Thomas B. Green — Mr. Green has served as Senior Vice President, Law and Administration since December 1997, and is responsible for overseeing the Company’s legal and governmental affairs, human resources function, corporate communications and other administrative departments. Mr. Green joined the Company in August 1994 as General Counsel and Secretary. Before joining the Company, Mr. Green served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Chicago Title & Trust Company from October 1992 to July 1994, and as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Trammell Crow Company from October 1990 to October 1992. From February 1989 to October 1990, Mr. Green was employed by the law firm of Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue, Dallas, Texas, last serving as a partner in that firm. His background also includes a term as law clerk to former United States Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger. Mr. Green received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Utah.

Joseph A. Marengi — Mr. Marengi joined the Company in July 1997 and serves as Senior Vice President, Americas. In this position he shares responsibility for business operations in the Company’s Americas region, including the Company’s manufacturing facilities in Austin, Texas, Nashville, Tennessee and Eldorado do Sul, Brazil. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Marengi worked at Novell, Inc., most recently serving as President and Chief Operating Officer. He joined Novell in 1989, where he first served as Vice President of the Eastern region and ultimately became Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Field Operations. For ten years prior to joining Novell, Mr. Marengi served as Vice President of Channel Sales for Excelan, Inc. and in various other executive, sales, information management positions. From 1978 through 1981, Mr. Marengi served in the United States Coast Guard and Coast Guard Reserve, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Mr. Marengi earned a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Massachusetts and a master’s degree in Management from the University of Southern California. Mr. Marengi serves of the board of directors of Vignette Corporation and is on the Corporate Advisory Board of the USC Marshall School of Business.

Rosendo G. Parra — Mr. Parra joined the Company in August 1993 and serves as Senior Vice President, Americas. In that position, he shares responsibility for business operations in the Company’s Americas region, including the Company’s manufacturing facilities in Austin, Texas, Nashville, Tennessee and Eldorado do Sul, Brazil. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Parra held various sales and general management positions with GRiD Systems Corporation, including Regional Sales Director and Vice President and General Manager of the PC Strategic Business Unit. Before his association with GRiD, Mr. Parra spent nine years in various sales and management positions for the business products division of Tandy Corporation. Mr. Parra earned a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from the University of Maryland.

James M. Schneider — Mr. Schneider is the Company’s Chief Financial Officer and also serves as the Company’s Chief Accounting Officer. In this role, he is responsible for the Company’s finance function for all business units worldwide including planning, financial systems, facilities and the controller’s office. Mr. Schneider joined the Company in September 1996 as Vice President of Finance and Chief Accounting Officer, was named Senior Vice President in September 1998 and Chief Financial Officer in March 2000. For three years prior to joining the Company, Mr. Schneider was with MCI Communications Corporation, last serving as Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance. For 19 years prior to joining MCI, Mr. Schneider was associated with Price Waterhouse LLP, serving as a partner for 10 years. Mr. Schneider holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Carroll College in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and is a Certified Public Accountant. He is a member of the board of directors of both General Communications, Inc. and Multilink Technology Corporation and is a member of the Financial Executives Institute.

James T. Vanderslice — Dr. Vanderslice serves as Vice Chairman of the Company. In this role, Dr. Vanderslice serves as an advisor to Mr. Dell and Mr. Rollins, with an emphasis on procurement,

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ITEM 2 — PROPERTIES

At February 1, 2002, the Company owned or leased a total of approximately 10.2 million square feet of office, manufacturing and warehouse space worldwide, approximately 6.9 million square feet of which is located in the U.S. and the remainder located in various international areas.

The Company believes that it can readily obtain additional space as may be required at competitive rates by extending expiring leases or finding alternative space.

The Company’s principal offices are located in Austin, Texas and U.S. manufacturing facilities are located in Central Texas and Middle Tennessee.

The Company owns 360 acres of land in Round Rock, Texas (north of Austin), on which are located several office buildings completed since August 1994 that contain an aggregate of approximately 2.1 million square feet of office and lab space. This includes approximately 900,000 square feet of owned office buildings and 1.2 million square feet of leased office space. These buildings, comprising the Company’s Round Rock Campus, house the Company’s sales, marketing and support staff for the Americas region.

The Company leases 570 acres of land in Austin, Texas referred to as the Parmer Campus. Approximately 2.0 million square feet of office, manufacturing and distribution space are located on the campus, including four leased office buildings totaling 1.1 million square feet and three manufacturing/distribution facilities totaling 900,000 square feet. Approximately 224,000 square feet of the manufacturing/distribution space is currently subleased to an unrelated third party.

The Company leases approximately 1.2 million square feet of space in Middle Tennessee referred to as the Nashville Campus. This includes a 360,000 square foot office building leased in Nashville, Tennessee that houses sales, technical support and administrative support staff. Also included is a 300,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Lebanon, Tennessee and a 305,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Nashville, Tennessee. Approximately 215,000 square feet of warehouse/distribution space is subleased to an unrelated third party.

In addition to the Campuses, the Company also leases approximately 1.6 million square feet of additional space located primarily in Central Texas. Approximately 400,000 square feet is used to house the Company’s executive headquarters, labs, services and administrative support functions and 500,000 square feet is used for manufacturing and distribution. The remaining 700,000 square feet of office and manufacturing space, with lease expiration dates ranging from June 2002 to December 2010, has been taken out of service in connection with the Company’s recent restructuring actions and — depending on the facility — has either been subleased or is being marketed for sale or sublease.

At February 1, 2002, the Company’s international facilities consisted of approximately 3.3 million square feet of office and manufacturing space in 36 countries. Approximately 1.6 million square feet

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The Company has manufacturing and office facilities in Eldorado do Sul, Brazil; Limerick, Ireland; Penang, Malaysia and Xiamen China. Approximately 100,000 square feet is leased in Eldorado do Sul. Approximately, 1.1 million square feet of office and manufacturing space is owned or leased by the Company in Ireland, and approximately 300,000 square feet of the manufacturing/distribution space has been removed from service and is being prepared for sale or alternative Company use. Approximately 30,000 square feet of office space is leased in Bangalore, India, where the Company is expanding its customer phone support and back-office capabilities. The Company owns two facilities in Penang, Malaysia totaling 560,000 square feet that combines both office and manufacturing space. Both facilities are located on land leased from the State Authority of Penang. Over 340,000 square feet of office and manufacturing space is owned in Xiamen, China.

ITEM 3 — LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The Company is subject to various legal proceedings and claims arising in the ordinary course of business. The Company’s management does not expect that the results in any of these legal proceedings will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

ITEM 4 — SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS

No matter was submitted to a vote of the Company’s stockholders, through the solicitation of proxies or otherwise, during the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2002.

PART II

ITEM 5 — MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

Market Information

The Company’s common stock is traded on The Nasdaq National Market under the symbol DELL. Information regarding the market prices of the Company’s common stock may be found in Note 11 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in “Item 8 — Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

Holders

As of April 15, 2002, there were 35,700 holders of record of the Company’s common stock.

Dividends

The Company has never paid cash dividends on its common stock and does not anticipate paying any cash dividends on its common stock for at least the next 12 months.

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ITEM 6 — SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

The following selected financial data should be read in conjunction “Item 7 — Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Item 8 — Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

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Description of Business

The Company designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports a wide range of computer systems, including enterprise systems (servers, workstations, and storage and networking products), notebook computers and desktop computer systems, and also offers software, peripherals and service and support programs. The Company is generally managed on a geographic basis. The three geographic regions are the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific-Japan. Within the Americas, the Company is further segmented into Business and U.S. Consumer. The Company markets and sells its computer products and services under the Dell brand name directly to its various customer groups. These customer groups include large corporate, government, healthcare and education accounts, as well as small-to-medium businesses and individuals. For a discussion of the Company’s reportable segments, see Note 10 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in “Item 8 — Financial Statements and Supplementary Data”.

The Company’s objective is to maximize stockholder value by executing a strategy that focuses on a balance of three priorities: liquidity, profitability and growth. Management believes that opportunity exists for continued worldwide growth by increasing the Company’s market presence in its existing markets, entering new markets, and pursuing additional product and service opportunities.

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements, including the related notes. Statements in this Report that relate to future results and events are based on the Company’s current expectations. Actual results in future periods may differ materially from those currently expected or desired because of a number of risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of factors affecting the Company’s business and prospects, see “Item 1 — Business — Factors Affecting the Company’s Business and Prospects.” All market share references included in this discussion are according to IDC.

Fiscal 2002 Overview

The Company achieved strong financial results in fiscal 2002 despite one of the most challenging years for the global personal computer industry, the softening of the global economy, and the tragic events of September 11th. As the Company entered fiscal 2002, it was already evident that industry unit demand was falling sharply. The Company responded to these market conditions by adopting an aggressive pricing strategy to maximize market share growth and realize as much profit as possible in light of the conditions. In executing its strategy, the Company leveraged its low-cost structure and efficient direct-to-customer model to aggressively discount prices across all product lines and quickly passed through rapidly falling component prices to its customers. The Company also realigned its cost structure with reductions in workforce, facility consolidations and certain asset impairments. Management believes this strategy maximized the Company’s share of the industry profit pool and best positioned the Company for maximum success when the economy and industry unit demand improve. The Company has demonstrated during its history that its market share gains are sustainable.

The Company achieved industry-leading results in fiscal 2002 as year-on-year unit shipments increased by 15% while industry shipments declined 5% (the first ever year-on-year industry decline), resulting in market share gains in every region and product line. The Company attained and solidified its position as the No. 1 personal computer systems company in the world. The Company generated relatively stable year-on-year net revenue of over $31 billion, and achieved operating earnings of over $2 billion (excluding the impact of restructuring actions), whereas its five largest competitors collectively experienced declining revenues and operating losses in their personal computer systems and related businesses. Additionally, an intense focus on operating expenses resulted in the Company reducing operating expenses (excluding special charge) as a percent of revenues for the year.

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In addition to maximizing profitability and growth, the Company delivered outstanding liquidity during the fiscal year with operating cash flow of $3.8 billion and with $8.3 billion in ending cash and investments. The Company exited fiscal 2002 with a record cash conversion cycle of negative 36 days.

Results of Operations

The following table summarizes the results of the Company’s operations for each of the past three fiscal years. All percentage amounts were calculated using the underlying data in thousands.