The manufacturer recorded total sales of $58.5bn (£45.7bn) for the 12-month period ended 31 October 2018, up from $52.1bn a year earlier. For the three-month Q4 period its revenue was up from £13.9bn a year ago to $15.4bn.

Revenue in the firm’s printing division grew from $18.7bn to £20.8bn for the full year, and from $4.86bn to $5.3bn in Q4.

HP’s Personal Systems division, which comprises workstations, notebooks and desktops, saw net revenue climb by 11% year-on-year in Q4, from $9.07bn to $10.06bn. For the full year, revenue in the division jumped by 13% from $33.3bn to $37.7bn.

HP’s Q4 net earnings were up from $660m, or 40 cents per share a year ago, to $1.45bn, or 92 cents per share. For the full year they climbed from $2.53bn, or $1.50 per share, to $5.33bn, or $3.30 per share.

Profits in the Printing segment in Q4 grew by 5.7% year-on-year, from $805m to $851m, while profits in Personal Systems increased by 10.9%, from $341m a year ago to $378m. For the full year, profits in the Printing segment were up by 5.6% from $3.15bn to $3.32bn while profits in Personal Systems grew by 16.6% from $1.21bn to $1.41bn.

In a webcast held following the publication of the results, HP Inc president and chief executive Dion Weisler said: “As we close fiscal 2018, I’m proud of the results we delivered. It was a strong quarter and an exceptional year for HP.

“Our results demonstrate sustained operational performance, a disciplined investment framework, and prudent cost management. Our core growth and future strategy is working, and we are well positioned for continued success across our categories and our regions.

“We returned over $3.5bn to shareholders through share repurchases and dividends, and we generated these results while continuing to invest in our strategic initiatives that are helping to strengthen our long-term competitiveness.”

He added: “Overall, I’m pleased with our company’s 2018 results. We’ve done what we said we would do. We are growing the business top line and bottom line and generating strong cashflow. We are delivering returns for our shareholders and investing in the future to create long-term value.

“We will continue to play our own game, execute our strategy with rigour and aim for sustainable growth for the long-term. And we will do so with the same sense of urgency and passion that has propelled our business forward since separation.”