JPMorgan analyst Mark Murphy said his quarterly survey of 28 VMware partners left him "highly surprised" by the incremental strength reported given the backdrop of clearly softening demand for infrastructure hardware and software companies. Partners finished the quarter 3.4% above plan, on average, which Murphy identifies as the highest level for a Q2. Additionally, all key metrics up ticked year-over-year and sequentially, leading him to view VMware as well positioned. Murphy did add, though, that 46% of VMware partners believe Enterprise data center spending is beginning to soften and that he suspects Q1 billings growth benefitted from delays in Q4 bookings, which could "create an adverse setup for Q2 billings growth optics." Murphy keeps an Overweight rating on VMware shares.