VRTS was a hottie today ...just a reprint of last earnings and guidance for refernce:
Veritas first-quarter profits rise 68%
Software maker will miss Q2, full year estimates
By Deborah Adamson, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 5:24 PM ET April 17, 2001
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (CBS.MW) - Veritas Software on Tuesday reported better-than-expected earnings for the first quarter but warned of a profit shortfall for the next quarter and the full year.
Shares of Veritas dropped by $1.08 to $56.50 in after-hours trading, after rising by more than 5 percent in the regular session.
The storage management software maker (VRTS: news, msgs, alerts) made a pro forma profit, before purchase accounting adjustments, of $87 million, or 21 cents a share, 68 percent ahead of last year's $52 million, or 12 cents. That's a penny better than the consensus estimate of analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial.
Sales ratcheted up by 58 percent to $387 million, from $245 million.
In addition, the company strengthened its cash position by $100 million to $1.36 billion in the quarter.
The company said across-the-board strength in business helped boost results past Wall Street's expectations.
Veritas executives said during a conference call with analysts that sales were buffeted by a slowdown in information technology spending and by the company's ability to lower the total cost for clients, a business expansion and the still-healthy storage market.
But including purchase accounting adjustments for acquisitions, Veritas overall lost $156 million, or 40 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $174 million, or 44 cents, in the prior year.
Purchase accounting amortization topped $237 million in the just-concluded quarter, about flat from the same period a year ago.
Going forward, the company said it has some concerns.
Its forecast for annual revenue growth came down to 35 to 50 percent from 45 to 50 percent, to account for a slowing economy. But Veritas said its original, higher projection is still attainable.
However, the company warned that second quarter profit looks like it's going to come in at 19 cents a share, missing analysts' expectations by 2 cents. It expects to miss the full year's estimate of 90 cents as well, by 6 cents.
Deborah Adamson is a reporter for CBS.MarketWatch.com in Los Angeles. |
